Never Say Never: The Dreary Drama
by TheWriter51
Summary: Part 2 of my first story Never Say Never...SUMMARY INSIDE! The Baudelaire's and Jane Rumary attend boarding school after being kicked out of Lucky Smells Lumbermill. When Jane is faced with an ultimatum, Should she betray her heart or her friends? KBxOC
1. Boarding School

Hey everyone! I'm publishing this new part of my story Never Say Never here! This next chapter in the lives of the Baudelaire's and my OC, Jane Rumary is at a boarding school in New York. (Not Prufock Prep yet)

Summary: After being kicked out of Lucky Smells Lumbermill, the Baudelaire's are honestly a little relieved. As the orphans take their chances at a boarding school with high security, academics, and a cool common room, they trully believe that they are safe from Count Olaf at last. As for Jane, boarding school is the last place she wants to be. But in a place where everything seems so benign, how bad could it be? When Count Olaf returns as apart of another one of his schemes the Baudelaire's and Jane are having trouble figuring out his plan. The Baudelaire's begin to wonder: 'Why is Olaf waiting? Why is Jane suddenly acting strange?' For Jane things only get worse when Count Olaf gives her an offer that she just can't refuse. But just how much will Jane do to protect the Baudelaire's? But those aren't the only things on Jane's mind. Her crush on Klaus seems to only grow bigger with time. When Jane is faced with an ultimatum, should she betray her heart or her friends?

**Note: Count Olaf isn't a relative of the Baudelaire's in my fan fic world.**

I hope you like it! R&R please!

Here's a link to part one: **.net/s/6475391/1/Never_Say_Never**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own ASOUE, Lemony Snicket does and this is only for fun, not profit.**

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**Chapter 1: Boarding School**

Mr. Poe pulled into the school's parking lot and found a spot as close to the entrance as possible. The Baudelaire's and I anxiously climbed out of the car and followed the banker onto the sidewalk. A stonewall covered in clumps of ivy bordered the school. There was a car pool like drive way in front of the entrance.

Mr. Poe led us to a pair of tall black wrought iron gates. He pressed a button to the side that was fixed above a speaker.

"Name?" A voice asked, professionally.

"I am Arthur Poe, a banker from Mulctuary Money Management. I am in charge of the affairs of the Baudelaire's and Miss Rumary. They will be attending this school." Mr. Poe coughed into his handkerchief.

"Enter, please," the voice told us before the gates slowly swung open.

In front of us was a massive fountain in the center of a cobblestoned courtyard. There were benches placed around the court covered by a thin layer of frost and a forest grew on all sides. Facing us was an enormous building that looked like the size of an average-sized mansion. I figured it was some kind of Administrative Building as that was the building we were headed to. Behind the building, the forest was dense but we could see a little bit of the campus on the other side. It looked pretty from where I stood. So far it seemed like the most pleasant place that we've been to in a while.

Well, to the Baudelaire's it was, however, to me, it was just a reminder of my past. Although it wasn't the same boarding school, I still might not have a good time. What if everyone hated me? What if I was picked on because maybe my parents weren't around to take care of me?

Maybe this place would be better though. I mean…it was a different school in an entirely different country. Besides, they have a great performing arts program and many other classes that interest me. They also have a high level of academics, which meant better teachers. One thing that Mr. Poe especially enjoyed was the fact that the high tech security could potentially stop Count Olaf from getting to us. However, the Baudelaire's and I both knew that it took more than security cameras and full proof alarm system to stop Count Olaf.

"Now children," Mr. Poe said as we reached the building. "This is a very prestigious boarding school and you are lucky that I was able to get you in at such short notice. Please be on your best behavior while you're here and do not cause any trouble. This school does not tolerate poor behavior and if there does happen to be something troubling you, you can always contact me at Mulctuary Money Management."

"We will," Violet said and we all nodded in agreement as Mr. Poe opened the door to the building and we followed him inside.

We stepped inside a spacious lobby. It had light wooden floors coated in polish so that they shined in spots where the sunlight streaming through the windows touched and there were cream-colored walls. In between a hallway leading somewhere else and a set of elevators was a tall prism-shaped desk with a Mac Book Pro desktop computer, a telephone, and various different pamphlets regarding the school. There were screens on the wall that appeared to be showing footage from the security cameras outside of the building at various different spots including the gates where we had stood a moment ago. Behind the desk sat a bald man who wore a professional looking black suit. For a second the Baudelaire's and I stiffened, thinking it was Olaf's henchmen but his baldhead wasn't the same shape and he didn't have a long nose. Even if he did, Olaf's henchmen were usually in disguise except on rare occasions like at Lake Larchymose.

Mr. Poe walked up to the front desk. The Baudelaire's and I followed behind him.

"Hello," said the man behind the desk.

"How do you do," Mr. Poe said, "We just arrived. I'm Arthur Poe a banker from Mulctuary Money Management."

"Yes, yes," the man said, quickly, "I was the person who spoke to you through the speaker. You can head up to the second floor. Our Principal, Mr. Lance's office will be there, his secretary will tell you where to go once you get up there."

"Thank you," Mr. Poe said, "Come, children."

He led us to the elevators and we rode one up to the second floor. There were six floors in this building according to the elevator.

The doors to elevator opened to the second floor that was decorated with the same floors and walls as the lobby. We walked through the first door to our left into the main office. We were in a small waiting room with a beige carpet and grey cushioned chairs against the wall. In front of us was another desk like the one in the lobby but this time at the desk, was a lady with chin length brown hair dressed in a professional looking pinstriped suit. The Baudelaire's and I looked closely at her, trying to see if Count Olaf had disguised himself as a woman again.

"Hello," she said, kindly. A nameplate on her desk told us her name was Mrs. Collins.

"Hello," Mr. Poe said, "I have an appointment with Mr. Lance."

"Can you give me your name, sir?" Mrs. Collins asked.

"I'm Arthur Poe," he said, "I believe we spoke on the phone."

"Oh, yes, I remember," she said, "They must be the children you spoke of. Well, have a seat in Room 5 and Mr. Lance will be with you in a moment."

"Thank you," Mr. Poe said and we walked down the hallway past the front desk. I opened the door to Room 5 and we sat down opposite the smaller desk.

The desk was a mess. Paper, pens, and pencils were cluttered all over it so you could hardly see the top of the desk.

The door opened then, and a tall man with light brown hair and a clean-shaven face, hastily made his way in. He looked as jumbled as the desk. The dark blue suit that he wore had thread coming from the seams and was covered in lint. His blue and white striped tie was off to the side. His dress shirt was white and wrinkled.

"Hello, Mr. Poe, children," he said as he sat down at his desk and fixed his tie. "How do you do?"

"How do you do," Mr. Poe said.

"How do you do," Violet said. We all copied.

"I'm sorry about this mess," he said shuffling some papers on his desk. "It's just been a very busy day today, especially when our fifth grade math teacher has quit only yesterday, as well as the teacher who runs the acting classes and one of the music classes here. She was also supposed to direct the fifth grade's winter play and organize one of our clubs. It was very sudden and it's put us behind. We haven't even begun auditions yet." He sighed heavily. "But thankfully, I reached someone who was willing to teach."

"Well, I just came to make sure the children were alright on their own," Mr. Poe said, "I can't stay, it has a very busy day at the bank as well and I need to get back. I hope this matter will be settled soon. Now, good-bye children."

"Good-bye," I said. The Baudelaire's said goodbye, except for Sunny who shrieked "Yeet!" as her own term for 'good-bye'. Mr. Lance gave Mr. Poe a little wave before he left.

We were now alone with Mr. Lance. He began to tidy up his desk some more.

"Now, Mr. Poe has told me about your past troubles," he said, "and I'd like you four to know that you'll be perfectly safe here. Our school has high security as you have probably already noticed. I've had a meeting with our staff about this Count Olaf man and we have programmed our security system to detect this man if he enters the school's grounds."

Our faces lit up with hope. Maybe we would be safe after all. How could such a beautiful and pleasant place like this be threatened by danger?

"Thank you," Klaus said, sounding relieved. "We're very grateful."

"Well, you are most certainly welcome." Mr. Lance said, glancing behind him swiftly, "We do our best to make our students here feel at home. Now, about your classes…everything you need is right here."

He handed each of us a manila envelope. I pulled out one of the papers.

"That is your schedule," He explained. "Don't worry about little Sunny finding her way by herself, she will spend most of the day in the classrooms for children her age and will always be escorted there with her classmates by a teacher." He paused to take a breath.

"That paper also has the information about what dorm room you will be in. You will be roommates with one person from your grade, except for Sunny. Sunny will share a room with up to five girls that are around the same age. Boys and girls live in the same buildings, however, they are not allowed in each other's rooms. If you would like to chat, the common room is the perfect place for that." He suddenly spoke very strictly. "Anyone who violates that rule will be expelled immediately." He looked at each of us sternly. "But Mr. Poe said you were good children so I trust that you'll be good."

"Here are some maps for each of you as well. And now, I will need you to choose your special classes for this year or in Violet's case, her electives. You've already picked your language classes so that's settled. Now, everyone here is allowed to take any special or elective class they wish that is available for their age. Students from grades four to eight are allowed to choose two special classes. Everyone in high school chooses two electives. Everybody else from grade 1 to 3 must only choose one. Kindergarteners and preschoolers aren't required to take special classes because they're too young to be going off on their own. They'll stay with their classmates and do all kinds of fun activities for every subject. Everyone, apart from the lowest grades, must have at least one elective. For children from grade eight and up can use their other elective period as free time or for tutoring. You won't have to start your special or elective classes until this Monday as it is the weekend and we never have class on weekends. However, if you sign up for an activity or participate on a sports team, you may have practice or meetings on weekends. Auditions for electives are on Monday if there are any. There aren't any special classes that require an audition. I'll give you until Sunday to chose your electives or special classes. The lists of electives or special classes that you are allowed to take are in your folders."

We each pulled out a pile of papers stapled together from our folders that said: SPECIAL CLASSES, except for Sunny. I knew immediately which specials I wanted to take: Acting and Jazz.

"I'll be back in a moment I need to speak with the man who is installing Count Olaf into our security system," Mr. Lance said, "You can begin thinking about your special or elective classes."

We nodded and he left closing the door behind him.

"They all look like great electives," Violet said, "I already know what I'd like to take. Engineering sounds great and I'm taking Physics this year too. I've never been offered to take a course in engineering before and at our last school I had to take Earth Science for my freshmen year, which isn't nearly as interesting as Physics. I guess I'll take business as another elective. I really don't want a free period."

"I found some special classes I'd like to take too," I said. "There are two perfect electives for my interest in theater. Acting and there are dance classes so I want to take jazz."

"Glua!" Sunny shrieked which meant, "I wish I could take fun special classes."

"Don't worry Sunny," Violet said, "that's just for now. When you're older you'll get to pick a special class. We can't always get everything we want and I think this is probably the best we're ever going to get."

"You're right, all of the specials look great though I'd rather spend that time in a library," Klaus said. "I don't really see anything that I'd really love to do, other than Advanced Literature but you have to be in high school for that. They do have Introduction to Literature special where I'll get to read the best American novels that are at my age level. That'll be interesting. But I don't know about a second special class."

"Well," I said, "why don't you do acting too? It will be fun!"

"Oh, I couldn't," Klaus said, shaking his head, "I can't act like you can."

"Have you decided yet?" Mr. Lance asked, briskly coming into the office again.

"Not all of us," Violet said, looking at Klaus.

"That's alright," He said. "You don't have to decide right now. When you've made a decision you can hand it in to my secretary at the office. Just be sure you hand it in before Sunday at 7:00pm."

"Thank you," Klaus said.

"Great," Mr. Lance said, smiling, "Now do you have any questions about your classes or the school?"

"Yes," I said, "I'm interested in the performing arts, is there anything you can tell me about that?"

"Well, the sixth, seventh, and eighth graders perform a play together as they are our middle school. The high school has a musical usually performed in the spring and plays at other dates. The kindergarteners and preschoolers usually just perform in a chorus concert for the school with their classes. From grade 1 to grade 5, they perform their own separate plays or musicals. The auditions for the play are sometime next week since our new teacher won't arrive until Monday. The play for the fifth grade will be Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll, which is a comedy about Alice and Wonderland." He cleared his throat.

"If you're interested, there's also a performing arts afterschool club called Company. It's a student run club that meets every Monday in the auditorium. You can attend the meeting on Monday and I'm sure our seniors will explain what the club is about. You're lucky because we only allow students in fifth grade and on to participate in the club. Our fifth grade acting teacher, when he arrives, will monitor the club to make sure everyone is on task and prepared for the shows they perform."

"Cool," I said, smiling, "I'll check it out."

"Does the school have a library?" Klaus asked, pushing his glasses up higher on his nose.

"Yes, of course, and feel free to go there as much as you like," Mr. Lance replied. "It's great to have students who are so eager to learn. Are there any more questions?"

"What about sports?" I asked, "I really like to run and I was hoping to join the cross-country team or track and field team."

"Our school has many different sport teams," Mr. Lance said, "And Mr. Poe gave us all of your health information and signed the documents to allow you four to participate in sports. All you need to do is fill out a form for the sport you want to join and bring it with you to the practice. The indoor-track season for fourth and fifth graders starts the Friday of next week. Here's the form right here." He dug through a drawer in his desk and pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to me.

"Thank you," I said, smiling. I've always loved to run. Running cross-country and track, I knew would be very difficult but I always dreamed of being able to run like the wind. Besides, I never really liked to play any of the other sports except for tennis.

"Are there any more questions?" Mr. Lance asked.

We glanced at each other but no one said anything.

"I don't think so," Violet said.

"Great, well if you have any other questions, I'm sure the students will know the answers to them," he said, "You four will be in the Robinson dorm building. You can find it on the map. As for your classes, Violet, as you are in high school your classes are taught by different teachers in different buildings. If you follow the map and your schedule, you'll be fine. Buildings are usually grouped together by their subject and age. For example, all of the high school language classes are in the same area. As for Klaus and Jane, you will have three teachers for your main subjects. One teacher, Mrs. Rosenbloom will teach English and Social Studies in Room E501 and Room E502 for math which will now be taught by Mr. LaFont. Room E503 is for science and will be taught by Mrs. Johnson. The E stands for the wing of the campus the rooms are in. You will also be taking Art and Gym. The gym for your grade is right near your main classrooms as well as the Art classroom. I'm sure you'll be able to find your way. Sunny will remain in the same classroom all day and will be escorted to and from places by a teacher with her classmates. Now I do believe it is past dinnertime now so you can head over to your dorm rooms now."

"Thank you," Violet said as we stood up and headed to the door.

"You're welcome," Mr. Lance said.

We were silent as we took the elevator down to the lobby and walked out of the building.

Klaus pulled out his map. It said to go behind the Administrative building that we had just been in and there is supposed to be a bridge that will take us to the main campus. We followed the maps instructions and as we reached the other side of the stone bridge we stopped and stared in awe at the vast campus.

The campus was covered mostly in green grass except for the walkways that led around the school grounds and the buildings that were spread over the campus. A layer of frost blanketed the grass. Some buildings were connected to others and other buildings were separated. There were signs everywhere that showed where places such as the cafeteria and the library were.

"I can't believe it, but I think we may be truly safe this time," Violet said.

"Yes," Klaus said, smiling. "The campus is beautiful, too."

"I just hope the other students here are friendly," I said, looking down.

"Are you alright?" Klaus asked. "You don't seem very excited to be here, why?"

I shrugged. "You know," I whispered to Klaus. Violet and Sunny still didn't know about how I really became an orphan.

"You mean this was where you were abandoned?" Klaus asked, in a whisper.

I shook my head. "But it's still a boarding school, I mean, what if the other kids are just as mean? What if they make fun of me?"

"They're not going to," Klaus said, determindley, "This is a different school with different kids. You'll meet some nice friends, I know it. And even if you don't, you're not going to be alone this time. Violet, Sunny, and I are here. Besides, it's better than the Lumbermill. We'll get to do things that we love to do. I'm sure you'll make tons of friends in your acting class."

"I hope you're right."

"Shual!" Sunny shrieked which Klaus explained meant, "What are you guys whispering about?"

Klaus looked at me. "Do you want to tell them?"

I bit my lip then sighed. Of course I should tell them. I knew I could trust that they would treat me the same way.

"Yes," I replied. "Could you kind of start it up though?"

Klaus chuckled. "Sure," he turned to Violet and Sunny. "Jane has something to tell you. See, her parents didn't actually die in a fire. She's still an orphan, but for a different reason."

Violet's eyes widened. "How did they perish?"

"They were killed in a car crash," I said, "But when I was two years old, they left me at a boarding school in Ontario, Canada. A few years later, they died and I was left an orphan. I grew up at the boarding school but it was a very miserable experience because I was always teased and bullied by the girls. This girl who didn't like me because I was an orphan abandoned by my parents, started the bullying. I was one of her roommates in addition to that and she turned everyone against me. They used to tell me I was an 'accident'. I was very happy when Mr. Poe came to take me away from that place. And I guess you know what happened next." I had already explained about my encounter with Count Olaf and how I disappeared to them as well as the Mathilda theory Klaus and I came up with. "Klaus knows from when Count Olaf was disguised as Stephano. He told Klaus when he was threatening us with his knife as a warning to you and Sunny. I'm sorry I didn't tell you before…it was just hard…I didn't want you to judge me based on that. And then we got caught up in all of that Count Olaf stuff and I forgot to tell you."

"It's alright, Jane," Violet said, "we understand but I wish you would have told us sooner. I guess if I were you, I wouldn't want to tell many people right away too. So, you must be worried about this school."

I nodded.

"I'm sure you'll be alright," Violet said, "It can't be any worse than what we've been through since we met. There aren't any man-eating leeches or lumbermills or eye-shaped buildings."

I smiled. "Maybe you're right."

"Yes," Klaus said, "Well, I guess we should go to our dorms now and unpack. Mr. Poe said that our luggage would already be there, waiting for us. I really don't think we have much though."

"Salda!" Sunny shrieked which meant, "I wish we didn't have to sleep in separate rooms."

We all nodded. We made our way to the Robinson dorm building. We were all in the same dorm at least. We walked up the steps leading to the entrance of the Robinson building. Violet opened the door for us and we walked into a magnificent foyer.

The foyer of the dorm was small but still nice; a thick red oriental rug was spread out on a dark wooden floor. On the table was a vase filled with tulips and a small whiteboard on a stand with reminders written on it. There was a hallway on the opposite side of the room that we wandered down and into another room.

"Wow," I said, astonished.

The hallway opened into an enormous common room with a group of comfortable looking chairs and bean bags that were scattered all over the room. There were some bookshelves stocked with tons of books on every subject and from every genre. There were other shelves stocked with all kinds of board games on the right side of the room. There were more chairs circling around one of those electric fireplaces that you could turn off by using only a switch.

Straight ahead, were two staircases. The left staircase was marked** Gents'** and the right staircase was marked **Ladies'**. To the right of the common room was another hallway. We meandered down it curiously, to find that it led to another enormous room.

The room was stalked with fun arcade games, such as Pac-man and Frogger. There was an ice cream freezer, a milkshake machine, and other yummy snacks. That wasn't all that was fantastic about this room. There were posters decorating the walls like _Boys Like Girls, Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, Lady Gaga,_ and _Paramore_ and to my pleasure was a large Glee poster with Darren Criss on it. I've loved that show ever since I saw an episode at my last school. Carmelita Spats watched it all of the time and I came into the television room when she was watching the show with a bunch of other girls one time. Carmelita saw me peeking at the screen from behind the couch and made me get out. She said Glee was only for girls who had parents and I wasn't worthy enough to watch it with them. I kept sneaking in to watch it whenever they did though, making sure Carmelita or her friends didn't see me. I wanted to be like Rachel Berry and get all of the leads and solos in everything, though I didn't like her when she got upset at other Glee members because they got the solo. When that happened I didn't like her at all because she reminded me of Carmelita Spats.

To the left of the room, there was a black curtain. I walked towards it and pushed it aside, to reveal a mini movie theater with a popcorn popper, like the ones at carnivals. The theater had a wide screen television and black leather reclining chairs with drink and popcorn holders.

"Oh, my," Violet said, in amazement.

"This place is amazing!" I cried. "If they had all this at my last school, I may have wanted to stay."

"Well, let's go find our rooms and unpack before we have to go to bed," Klaus said, "It's a good thing today is Friday so we'll have plenty of time to hang out in here tomorrow."

"Yes, I can't wait," I said, excitedly.

We walked back down the hall towards the staircase.

"Well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow," Klaus said.

"Good night!" I said, giving Klaus a hug. When I pulled away Klaus' cheeks were pink.

"Good night," Violet said, giving Klaus a hug too.

"Gewa!" Sunny shrieked, hugging Klaus' leg. Sunny meant "Good night!"

"Good night," Klaus said, walking up the staircase marked, **Gents'**.

Violet, Sunny, and I went up the **Ladies'** staircase; which seemed to go up several floors. We paused on the first floor to check what room we'd be in.

"It looks like Sunny will be sleeping in the nursery on this floor and I will be in Room 505," Violet said. "Which room are you in?"

"Mine says Room 310," I said, frowning a little. "I wish we could be in the same room."

"Me too," Violet said. "Hopefully our roommates are at least friendly. I'll bring Sunny with me to my room before I bring her to the nursery."

"Okay," I said.

We walked up to the third floor.

"Well, good night, Violet," I said, "Good night, Sunny."

"Good night," Violet said, smiling as she climbed farther up the stairs.

I sighed heavily as I opened the door and entered the hall that led to my room, 310. I took a deep breath and pushed open the door.

I didn't have to worry though; the room was dark and empty of any other girls. I turned on the light and scanned the room. The only way I knew I wasn't the only one in this room was that the room wasn't exactly neat and there was clothing lying here and there. iPod-speakers were placed on one of the two dressers with someone's iTouch in it. In the bathroom there were a couple bottles of shampoo and conditioner, a bar of soap, and other toiletries. There were two beds, one of which wasn't made indicating that the bed near the window was mine.

The room wasn't as luxurious as the rest of the building but it was as good as a dorm room could get. The walls were lavender and the floors were carpeted with the same beige color as it was out in the hall. There was a desk in the corner by the window covered with textbooks and other supplies. The two beds were singles and there was a small couch with its back pushed up against the window. In the bathroom was a bathtub with a showerhead and curtain, a sink, and a toilet of course.

My luggage was already in the room and I began to unpack the few clothes that I had and put them in the dresser that wasn't already being used. I hung my few jackets, coats, and a few semi-formal outfits, lent to me by Mrs. Poe when I had been living in the Poe household, in the closet that looked like I was sharing with my roommate.

I was just finished unpacking when the door opened and two girls walked in laughing.

One of the girls had curly brown hair that stopped at her shoulders. She had green eyes and glasses. Freckles dotted her cheeks. The other girl beside her was very pale and had long red hair. Her eyes were pale blue and she had freckles too.

They stopped laughing when they noticed me. At first they looked confused and then their faces brightened.

"Are you my new roommate?" the brunette asked, excitedly.

"I guess so," I said, warily.

"Cool," the redhead girl said, "What's your name?"

"Jane," I said, quickly, "I'm Jane Rumary."

"Well, I'm Megan Fuller," the brown haired girl said. "And this is my friend Claire Walters."

"Hi," I said, shyly.

They smiled. "Claire is in a different room," Megan said, "but she sometimes comes over to hang out. Her roommate isn't very nice to her."

"I'm sorry," I said, knowing exactly how that felt.

"Where are you from?" Claire asked.

"Boston, Massachusetts." I said.

"Is that where your parents live?" Megan asked, "My parents live there too."

"Um…no," I answered truthfully.

"Where do they live then?" Claire asked.

"Um…they…m-my parents aren't," I stuttered, "here right now. They…um, died."

Megan and Claire glanced at each other, frowning. "Oh no," Claire said, "We're sorry. We just thought…you know."

I smiled. "That's alright," I said, "It happened a long time ago."

"How come you came here now and not earlier?" Megan asked.

"Well, when I lost my parents, I was only two years old," I said, "They were killed in a fire that destroyed my entire home. I was at day care when it happened and I was taken to stay at a boarding school in Massachusetts." It was only partially true.

"Really?" Claire said, "Did you transfer here or something?"

"No," I said.

"What happened then?" Claire asked.

I sighed. "It's a long story," I said, smiling sadly as I sat on my bed.

"We'll listen," Megan said. "We have time. It's not even close to curfew. Do you want to go down and get a milkshake and then you can tell us?"

I followed them out of the room and back down to the common room. We went into the room with the milkshake machine. We got milkshakes, I got chocolate, and went into the mini movie theater and were just in time for Glee to start. They loved Glee too and thought Finn was hot. I kind of liked the blond boy, Sam and Darren Criss.

I told them all about how Mr. Poe took me from my last boarding school and brought me to live with a new guardian. I left out how I had witnessed the destruction of the Baudelaire's mansion. I also left out the part about having Count Olaf almost being my guardian and how I'd somehow disappeared. Instead, I told them that I was sent to Uncle Monty's right away. Then I explained about the Baudelaire's and Count Olaf. I told them about his many schemes to steal the fortunes that the Baudelaire's and I would inherit. As I told them about the Baudelaire's I began to wonder how they were getting along with their roommates. By the time I finished talking, we had to return upstairs. Megan and I said goodnight to Claire before we headed into our room. We got ready for bed and talked some more. Tonight, I fell fast asleep because I was so exhausted from the long car ride here. But just before I slipped into unconsciousness, I thought about what Violet and Klaus had said earlier today. Maybe they were right; maybe I would make friends here. Maybe I wouldn't be teased anymore. Even if I lied about my past…

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**Hope you like it so far!**


	2. The Roommates

Here's a new chapter! The first half of this chapter is about Violet and Klaus meeting their roommates...

Enjoy!

**Note:** There is a tiny bit of mature content like swearing just to warn you but nothing too bad.

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**Chapter Two: The Roommates**

_**Violet Baudelaire**_

When Violet returned to her room after putting Sunny to bed, it wasn't empty. A girl with pin straight black hair, wearing a black Pink Floyd t-shirt and dark jeans, sat on her bed flipping through a magazine angrily as if she didn't care much about what it said. Then with a groan she tossed it into the garbage beside the desk.

"Hello," Violet said, timidly, going to her suitcase to finish unpacking.

The girl stiffened and turned her piercing blue eyes on Violet. Her cool stare made Violet feel uncomfortable.

"Who are you?" the girl asked, in a hard voice.

"I-I'm Violet Baudelaire," Violet said, "your roommate."

The girl rolled her eyes. "I knew _that_," she said, coolly. "I'm Melissa Sampson. If you're going to live here then I suggest you don't put your stuff in the closet unless you never want to see it again." Then her expression changed to one of interest. "So what were you sent here for?"

Violet furrowed her eyebrows. "My parents…died," Violet mumbled, a little frightened of this Melissa girl. The moment she had seen her, Violet knew it would be unwise to mess with her.

"Oh how touching," Melissa Sampson mocked, "I'm sure you're just devastated. Don't be ashamed though. There are people that are sent to this school for reasons worse than that. My last roommate had been into drugs and she was sent to military school by her parents." She scoffed.

Violet just nodded and kept her eyes on the clothes she was folding and putting away in one of the drawers.

"You probably think I'm a druggy, don't you?" Melissa Sampson pressed, "That's what everyone thinks when they meet me. Honestly, I really don't give a damn what anyone thinks. But don't worry, I'm as innocent and _pure_ as an angel." She smirked, getting up from the bed and heading for the bathroom.

"Oh, and I always get first shower just so you know," Melissa called over her shoulder before shutting the door.

Violet was done unpacking and she fumbled inside her pocket for her hair ribbon that she always wore when she needed to focus on inventing something. At the moment, it served as a way for her to relieve her anxiety. How could she have ended up with such a horrible person as her roommate? But then, again ever since the fire, nothing in Violet's life had ever seemed pleasant. She just hoped that she could find someone nice in this school. Violet's friend at her old school, Rachel had been kind and a good friend. However, they weren't close enough that Rachel bothered to stay in touch after everything that happened. Maybe being friends with an orphan was just too much for some people to deal with.

An idea formed in Violet's mind to help her situation. Tomorrow, Violet would visit Mr. Lance and ask him to switch her roommate with someone else.

Violet got ready for bed while Melissa did the same. Melissa didn't say another word to Violet as they climbed into their beds to go to sleep. As Violet closed her eyes to try to get sleep for once, she thought she heard something strange. It sounded like Melissa was crying.

* * *

_**Klaus Baudelaire**_

I opened the door to my room and found a boy with sandy blonde hair lying on his bed with a Mac Book Pro on his lap. He wore black basket ball shorts and a gray t-shirt. He was typing something into the computer before smirking at something on the screen. He glanced at me as I slowly walked into the room.

"Are you my roommate?" he asked, looking me over.

"That's what it says on here," I said, pointing to the paper with my room information on it.

"What's your name?" he asked.

"Klaus Baudelaire," I said.

"Connor Samuels," the boy replied, as he typed something on his laptop.

I found my luggage and started to unpack.

"Do you have a Facebook?" Connor Samuels asked, suddenly.

"Uh, no sorry," I answered, furrowing my eyebrows. I barely used computers unless it was for school or for further research on a topic I was reading about.

"You probably should get it," he said, "my older brother, Jake says people who don't have Facebook are weird and have social issues but I guess you don't have an older brother like I do so that's okay. It's a good thing we're roommates then. Do you want me to make you an account?"

"Um…no thanks," I muttered, rummaging through my suitcase. Something fell out of it and landed near the end of one of the beds. It was a photo, a photo of Jane and my siblings taken by Mr. Poe at his office before we left.

I reached for it but Connor Samuels was quicker. He scooped up the photo and stared at it.

"Who are they?" he asked, pointing to Violet and Sunny.

"The burnette is my older sister Violet and the baby is my sister Sunny," I answered.

"I like the blonde girl," Connor said, "What's her name?"

I got up from where I had been crouching at my suitcase. I looked at Jane in the picture. She smiled like the rest of us but I could always tell by her bright blue eyes that she was sad. I sometimes wished I could go back in time and stop Mr. Poe from sending us to Uncle Monty's or Stephano from arriving in that taxi. Maybe then she would be happier.

"That's Jane Rumary," I answered.

Connor studied me with his dark green eyes. "Is she your girlfriend or something?"

"Uh…no," I replied, looking away. I felt uncomfortable talking about it. I admit I had grown to have a little bit of a crush on Jane. But who knew if she liked me back. "We're just friends."

"So, what are you here for?" Connor pressed, "Did your parents send you?"

I hesitated. "They…died," I said, warily.

"Oh so you're like an orphan?" he asked.

I nodded and returned to packing. Connor tossed the photo back onto my suitcase.

"My parents sent my older brother and I here," the boy said, "they wanted my brother and I to get a good education so we could go to Harvard or Yale. Most of my family attended those schools. Is your family a legacy at an Ivy League?"

"I don't think so," I responded, slightly irritated by Connor. All he seemed to care about was himself. "My parents were very well-read though, so I'm sure they went to a great school. I read a lot too."

Connor wrinkled his nose as if reading smelled bad. "I only read for school. I plan to be a businessman like my father. I want to own a company someday just like him."

To escape from another second of this foolish boy's constant bragging, I stepped inside the bathroom and got ready for bed. I just hoped Jane and my sisters were having a better time than I was. I sighed. I guess I couldn't have everything I wanted. Hopefully I would find nicer people to talk to, people who didn't boast about their families and wealth. I didn't need to prove my parents or family to anybody. I loved my parents and I never wanted to trade them for anyone else's parents.

* * *

_**Jane Rumary**_

In the morning, we slept in until we had to go eat breakfast. As we descended the stairs and entered the common room I saw the Baudelaire's talking to each other but not looking as happy as I was.

"Come and meet the Baudelaire's," I said to Megan and Claire and they nodded eagerly.

"Hey," I said, as I came over. The Baudelaire's looked in my direction and gave me slight smiles.

"Good morning," Klaus said.

"This is Megan and Claire. Megan is my roommate," I gestured to Megan and Claire who smiled kindly at the Baudelaire's then I introduced the Baudelaire's. "This is Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire, who I told you about."

"It's nice to meet you," Violet said.

"It's nice to meet you too," Megan said.

"We heard about what happened to your parents and everything," Claire said. "We're sorry about what happened to them. That Count Olaf guy sounds like a real butt head too."

The Baudelaire's and I laughed.

"He is kind of a pain," Klaus said, smiling warmly.

"Well, we were headed to the cafeteria to get some breakfast," Claire said. "So, why don't you all come along?"

"Sure, thanks," Violet said.

We walked to the cafeteria, talking the whole way. The cafeteria was very large; it had to be since there were so many students. We got our breakfast from the line and followed Megan and Claire to a table in the back of the cafeteria. Megan and Claire told us a little bit about the school. After we ate they took us on a tour of the school.

The rest of the campus was just as amazing. There was a fitness building where all of the weight rooms and dance studios were. A large gym was in that building too but only the high school students used it. Older students could only use the weight rooms too. But there was an indoor swimming pool that anyone could swim in on the weekends. There was a smaller pool too for kids like Sunny. There was a dome over the pool that opened up in the springtime when it wasn't as cold.

I learned that Megan and Claire were interested in theater too and were both taking acting. Claire was taking ballet but Megan was taking jazz like me. They showed us the school's auditorium, which was enormous. It was where the musicals and other shows were performed. They said that the play for the fifth grade was going to be Through the Looking Glass.

"My siblings and I have always loved Alice in Wonderland," Violet said, "It's our favorite children story."

"You should audition for Alice, Jane," Klaus said, sweetly.

Megan smiled. "True. She already has the hair for the part."

I smiled, coyly. "I don't know," I said, "I'm fine with any role. The role of one of the Queens wouldn't be so bad either." Honestly, I kind of wanted to be the Red Queen. It seemed like a fun role to play. We talked about the Alice and Wonderland movie for a bit. The new movie with Johnny Depp.

After the tour, it was already lunch and we headed back to eat.

The rest of the day was just as great, and the Baudelaire's seemed to be enjoying theirselves a little more.

* * *

The next day was similar to the last except we didn't go on a tour. Instead, we just hung out in the common room. Megan and Claire did homework while the Baudelaire's and I found comfortable chairs and read books. Klaus was still trying to decide what special to take. He kept scanning the packet and talking to me about possible choices. But he was never really satisfied.

"Maybe I'll ask them if I can take another language class," Klaus said, "None of these activities interest me."

I put my book down on the table. "This whole special thing isn't meant to cause you anxiety," I said, "there has to be some class on that list that you'd like to do. Even if it's something you've never done before and want to try. You might as well try something new while you can. I mean, you can't just read all of the time. Not that there's anything wrong with reading but…you know that saying 'everything happens for a reason', well maybe we found this school so that you can discover new hobbies."

Klaus smiled. "Well, I guess if that's how you want to look at it. There's a writing workshop I could take. I think I could try to learn how to write stories."

I rolled my eyes and laughed. "That's basically the same thing as reading," I said, "I think you're fine with writing."

Klaus sighed and was silent as he flipped through the packet. I moved in my seat so I could look over his shoulder. He reached the end and shook his head, dropping the packet onto the table.

"I give up," Klaus said, downheartedly. He leaned back in his chair. "Maybe I'll let the school pick something for me."

I pursed my lips and thought for a minute of what he should do. I broke into a smile. "You could always take acting with me," I said.

Klaus smiled and shook his head. "Jane, I have never acted in my life. The only play I have ever been in was when Count Olaf tried to marry Violet." He shuddered.

I sighed. "I know you don't have as much experience, but that's okay," I said, "All great actors have been through this kind of thing. Like Leonardo Dicaprio, he probably used to read all the time. Then he was probably sent to a boarding school and joined acting as a last resort and ended up loving it. Now he's a movie star." Klaus chuckled, rolling his eyes.

"Leonardo Dicaprio, probably didn't attend a boarding school or had any of those other things happen to him. Except for the part about loving acting and being a movie star," he said, through laughter.

I grinned. "Maybe he didn't but...who knows, maybe you'll even enjoy the class."

Klaus stared down at his packet.

"Please," I said, giving him my sweetest smile, "I really would love it if you did."

Klaus looked up and a small smile appeared on the corners of his mouth. "Alright. If you really want me to, then, I'll do it."

"Yes!" I cried, and smooshed Klaus into a hug. I let go and Klaus circled the two specials he wanted to do. When he was finished I snatched the paper off of the table and started heading for the door.

Klaus followed after me. "Where are you going with that?" he asked.

"I'm turning it in before you change your mind," I said as I opened the door and stepped outside.

He laughed and came with me to the office to hand it in. As we were on our way back to the dorm, it started to snow. I stuck out my tongue and tried to catch one of the flakes on it.

The snow got heavier so Klaus and I ran the rest of the way back to the dorm, laughing the whole way.

When we got inside we were both covered in snow so when Klaus wasn't looking, I reached up and messed up his hair. Megan and Claire found us, then and we went into the common room and drank some hot chocolate that was also provided. When I thought I had got away with messing up Klaus' hair, he did the same to me.

Violet and Sunny joined us too. Sunny didn't drink any hot chocolate though; instead she nibbled on a raw carrot that she got from the snack room. Violet seemed worried, though, she didn't say anything about it.

Honestly, I haven't had this much fun in a long time. I hadn't caught snowflakes on my tongue since…I was a lot younger, maybe four. And I couldn't remember the last time I felt so…happy and carefree. I had friends now and I felt more like I fit into the world. Maybe things do happen for a reason and I was brought here to experience the kind of happiness that I've been longing to have. So what if Count Olaf was after my fortune and the Baudelaire's? So what if my parents didn't love me? So what if I had been teased at my last boarding school? I had the Baudelaire's, Megan, and Claire and I wouldn't want to trade them for anything. I kind of wished that this day would last forever and I wouldn't have to go to sleep. But time could never stop so I just hoped that tomorrow would be just as great.

* * *

_**Violet Baudelaire**_

On Sunday afternoon, Violet Baudelaire headed across the bridge towards the Administrative Building. When she had come yesterday, Mr. Lance had been too busy to help her and told her to come back another day. Violet reached the office and checked in with the secretary, Mrs. Collins.

She went into Room 5, which wasn't as jumbled as it had been on the first day and waited patiently for Mr. Lance. After five minutes, he entered the office and sat down at his desk.

"What can I do for you Violet?" he asked, sounding a like he'd rather be somewhere else.

"Well," Violet started, "I would like to switch rooms."

"Why?" he asked.

"My roommate isn't very kind," she admitted.

"And your roommate is?" Mr. Lance asked.

"Melissa Sampson, I think," Violet answered.

"Ah, yes," Mr. Lance said, "I understand."

Violet smiled hopefully. "So, you'll put me in another room?" she asked.

Mr. Lance opened his mouth to respond then shut it. He gave Violet an apologetic look. "Look," he said, "I'm very busy and I don't think I have time to worry about such a silly matter."

"But-" Violet began.

"I understand," he said, "Melissa Sampson can be…rude but maybe you should give her a chance. She's dealing with the same thing you are."

Violet looked at him curiously. "She is?"

Mr. Lance nodded. "The reason we put you with her is…because Mr. Poe has told me how well-behaved you children are. I think if you became friends with Melissa Sampson, she might be a better student. She lost her parents in a fire too. She's been very disturbed by it and acts out. Her parents were good friends of mine and I promised to take care of their daughter if anything happened to them. She's not a bad person. She sometimes slacks off and causes some trouble with other students but I'm sure once you get to know her, she'll change for the better."

Violet sighed. "I don't think she likes me," Violet said, "How am I supposed to be friends with her?"

"I really don't have time for this," Mr. Lance said, "I'm sorry but you're just going to have to work it out on your own. Now, I'm very busy and need to get back to work."

Violet did as she was told although she was reluctant at first. As she descended the elevator she thought about Melissa Sampson. Maybe the reason she had been crying that night had been because of her parents. Violet felt a tinge of pity for the girl. She understood how she felt and maybe Mr. Lance was right. Getting to know Melissa Sampson and giving her a chance might bring out the good side of her.

* * *

R&R please!


	3. Happiness Never Lasts

Here's a new chapter! Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter Three: Happiness Never Lasts**

_**Jane Rumary**_

I woke up the next morning feeling strangely anxious. Thinking about going to class worried me. I wasn't sure how the other kids would treat me. Maybe Megan and Claire were nice…but what if the other kids weren't?

I was silent as Megan and I got ready to go to breakfast. I took my time getting ready, making sure I looked decent. Maybe if I dressed nicely, I would feel better. I stared at my reflection in the mirror when I was ready. My blonde hair was parted in the middle and fell to my shoulders. My eyes were light blue with a tinge of green in their depths. As I stared at myself, I frowned. I've never really considered myself as being one of those pretty girls. I didn't think I was ugly though, I just thought I was ordinary looking. Sometimes I hoped that when I turned sixteen, I would somehow be prettier. Not model pretty but to at least turn a few heads and have some kind of beauty.

"Are you coming Jane?"

I jumped at Megan's voice. She was standing at the door with a backpack on her shoulders.

"Yeah," I said, throwing my own backpack on my shoulders, "just a minute."

She gave me a sweet smile and walked out the door.

I turned back to my reflection and played with my hair until I decided to leave it down, the way I typically wore it. I didn't like to wear my hair up in a ponytail because Carmelita had said I looked like a boy with it up. I liked to braid my hair occasionally but I mostly left it down with my bangs falling just above my eyebrows. I took a deep breath and found the courage to leave the room.

I caught up with Megan on the stairs. Claire was with her and we walked together into the common room. The Baudelaire's smiled warmly at us as we approached them.

"Hey, Jane," Klaus said, smiling the brightest. His smile made me feel a little better and I was able to give him a small smile in return.

"Hey," I said, "Are you ready to go?"

They nodded and we headed to the cafeteria for breakfast. A blanket of snow covered the ground outside and today they were serving waffles, which would have been great if I wasn't so nervous.

"What's wrong?" Klaus asked, noticing that I hadn't touched my food.

"I'm nervous," I said.

"You'll be fine," Violet said, "You've got Klaus, Megan, and Claire."

"How's your roommate?" I asked, curiously.

Violet shrugged. "She doesn't really talk much and keeps to herself. I don't think she likes me. She's not even my age. She's actually in grade seven."

"What's her name?" Megan asked.

"Melissa," Violet said, "I forgot what her maiden name is."

"You must be talking about Melissa Sampson," Claire said, "I have an older sister in your grade, Violet, her name's Julia Walters. She's really nice but she told me that Melissa Sampson doesn't hang out with many people. Apparently, her parents sent her to this school because she has issues."

"Some people in our grade think she was using drugs and got caught by her parents," Megan said.

Klaus frowned. "That's not good."

"Fluss!" Sunny shrieked which Klaus explained meant, "You should be careful, Violet."

"Don't worry," Violet said, furrowing her eyebrows, "I'm not into that kind of stuff at all. But we shouldn't judge her so quickly. Maybe it's something that she doesn't want people to know because she's ashamed. How do you know that's what happened to her?"

Claire and Megan exchanged glances. "She tells people that," Megan said, shrugging, "Did she say something else to you?"

"Uh…no," Violet answered, taking a sip of her orange juice, "I was just curious since she doesn't really talk to me."

Claire changed the subject to talk more about the school. I kept looking around the lunchroom, trying to spot fifth graders among the sea of students. A bunch of boys sat a few tables away. They appeared to look my age. A blond boy was staring at me, his eyes filled with curiosity. I looked down at my tray, blushing pink.

After breakfast, Violet took Sunny to her class before she would go to her own, leaving Klaus, Megan, Claire, and I.

We looked at our schedules and I was relieved to know that Klaus was in all of my classes, except for jazz, of course. Klaus and I had our first class, Math, without Megan or Claire. They reassured us that everyone was really nice here and not to worry.

We walked together to the fifth grade classrooms. We were given lockers and we headed to put our backpacks away along with the binders we wouldn't need until after lunch. We said goodbye to Megan and Claire before Klaus and I entered Math in Room E502. Some students were already at their seats. They gave Klaus and I curious glances as we found a place to sit.

"It's okay, Jane," Klaus said, noticing my stiffness.

"I'm really nervous," I squeaked, looking quickly at two girls sitting at the table next to ours who were whispering to each other.

"It'll be alright," Klaus said, "many of the kids seem like nice people."

Finally, the teacher entered the classroom and went to the front of the room. He had thick black curly hair and a black mustache. He wrote his name on the board in big letters. Mr. LaFont it read then he turned back to face the class.

"Hello," he began, "I am your new math teacher Mr. LaFont." His gaze fell on Klaus and I. He didn't look friendly. "And I believe I'm not the only person new to this school."

The class turned to stare at us.

"Why don't you two come up and introduce yourselves to the class?" he asked.

I glanced worriedly at Klaus.

"Come on," he said, giving me a reassuring smile.

I sighed and followed him up to the front. Klaus introduced himself and me too. I managed a small hi. The class said hello and we were asked to sit back down. The rest of the class was boring. Mr. LaFont just gave us a worksheet that took us the whole period to do.

Luckily, our next class was Art with Megan and Claire. They asked us about our day so far.

"Math wasn't so great," I said, grimacing.

Megan frowned. "That's a shame," she said, "our last math teacher was really fun."

We entered Art and Megan and Claire went to their assigned seats. The teacher, Mrs. Walsh entered and found Klaus and I seats at a table together. There were two people to a table so I didn't have to worry too much.

The boy who I saw at breakfast this morning sat at the table beside us. He smiled at me, making me look away and blush.

The teacher started the class. We were going to start a project soon that would collaborate with Social Studies. We were learning about Medieval Times and she wanted us to draw a sketch of a castle we wanted to build for it.

The class started drawing and chatting excitedly about their ideas.

"Hm…" I said, staring at my blank paper, "I don't know what to do for my castle."

Klaus had already started sketching his. I looked up at him from under my eyelashes. "What are you drawing?"

"A castle, Jane," he said, looking slightly amused, "like we're supposed to."

I put my elbows on the table and rested my chin in my hands. "I mean what are you going to do with it to make it look creative," I said, "don't you want your castle to stand out?"

"I never really thought about it," Klaus said, shrugging, "but this is still just a rough sketch. When I build the real thing, maybe I'll do something original with it."

I kept staring at him as he drew. Klaus looked at me nervously. "Can you stop staring?" he asked, chuckling, "You're making me feel self-conscious about my drawing."

"Really?" I said, my eyes brightening.

Klaus stared at me then looked down. "Yeah," he muttered, shaking his head, "I don't think Art is supposed to give me anxiety either."

I laughed and looked at my paper. "I think I'm going to decorate mine with butterflies and rainbows," I said, jokingly, "and there'll be princesses and dresses and flowers and princesses and more flowers."

Klaus laughed quietly.

I started to draw my own castle. Ideas came pouring into my mind as I thought about what would be different about my castle. My mind began to wander as I drew and I thought about when I had disappeared as I was about to be taken into the care of Count Olaf before I met the Baudelaire's. I thought about the dark tunnel I had been in and that gave me an idea.

"I know!" I cried, suddenly.

Klaus looked up, startled. "What?"

"My castle is going to have secret passageways," I said, "maybe one of those bookshelves that hides a secret room. They probably had those in Medieval Times."

Klaus smiled. "That's a good idea," he said, "maybe one of the secret passageways could be through a portrait. I've read a few books where those were included."

"Yeah," I agreed, excitedly. I flipped the sheet over and started to jot down the ideas. "Maybe the castle could be magic."

Klaus gave me an uneasy smile. "I was meaning to talk to you about that…Mathilda thing," his voice grew quieter.

"What about it?" I asked.

Klaus looked around to make sure no one was listening. "I think I can do that stuff too," he whispered, "at the lumbermill when Foreman Flacutono grabbed you…I think I did something to make him slip so he would let go. Also when we pulled on the gum to help Charles, get away from the saw…I felt something strange as he moved out of the way. It was a small tingling feeling."

"That's what happens to me," I said, "The reason I escaped from Shirley's clutches to come and save you was because I somehow managed to cut the restraints apart. But it's nothing to worry about. It's more helpful than dangerous and you're not insane either because if you were...that would make me insane too." I grinned and Klaus grinned back as he nodded.

"I didn't tell you at first," he said, "because I wasn't sure if I actually did it."

"It's okay," I said, "I understand."

Klaus smiled and continued drawing.

"If we're allowed to have partners for the project," I began, "do you want to work together? Maybe we can build a magic castle for people like us."

"That sounds great," Klaus said, "if only there were other people like us."

"You never know," I said, "there could be and they're just scared to admit their powers like we are."

"Probably," Klaus said, adjusting his glasses.

The class ended and we were told to finish our drawings for homework.

Klaus and I had English next with Megan and another girl with dark blonde hair and green eyes, named Nicole. In English we worked with our spelling books and when we finished we were allowed to write our own stories. I started writing a story about a girl like me who also had magic powers. She lived in the castle with her friends who could also do magic. The main girl, Princess Elle could move things without touching them and magically appear in places anytime she wanted. One of the benefits of being a Princess was that she owned all the candy factories in the world. Klaus was in the story too but his name was Edmund. He was the girl's best friend and he protected the girl from the evil sourcerer named Count Chocula (I'm guessing you can tell who he was in real life and I know it's a cereal but i wasn't going to call him dracula.), who wanted to steal all of the candy in the entire world for himself so he tries to steal Princess Elle's candy from her factories. Edmund can also read minds since Klaus reads so much. I almost made him Prince Edmund but I shied away at the thought.

After English we had lunch and headed to the cafeteria with Megan and Nicole. Claire was already there. She waved to us over to the table we sat at this morning. Megan had explained earlier that the fifth grade ate lunch with the fourth graders and the other students ate at different times so Violet and Sunny weren't there. We mostly talked about our classes and how excited we were to play in the snow at recess. Nicole lent me some snowpants in case we decided to play in the snow. Klaus didn't have any snowpants but he brought an extra pair of pants with him so he could change after we had recess.

We eagerly traipsed outside for recess after lunch. There was a jungle gym behind the cafeteria and a large field covered in white snow. A few teachers were supervising us. I recognized one of them as my math teacher, Mr. LaFont. He gave Klaus and I a hard stare as we passed by. Nicole, Claire, and Megan ran over to the monkey bars and I stayed behind with Klaus. He was holding a book in his hands.

"Are you planning on reading that?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, of course," he said.

I stuck out my lower lip. "You're not going to play with us?" I asked.

He shrugged. "I-I don't know."

"Why not?" I asked, tugging lightly on his arm, "It's recess, you have to play."

Klaus smiled. "Is it a law or something?" He cocked his eyebrow.

"Not at the moment," I said, "but I'll make it one."

"You can't make me," he said, and sat down on the bench. He opened his book and started to read.

"Oh, I'll find a way," I muttered, "you should keep a close eye on that book. I'm not finished yet."

I walked away to find Nicole, Claire, and Megan. They were sitting on top of the monkey bars. Nicole was hanging upside down she waved as I came over.

"Hey," I said, as I reached them.

"Hey Jane," Megan said, "Where's Klaus?"

"That's the problem," I told her, "Klaus doesn't want to play with us. He thinks reading is more important."

"More important than recess?" Claire asked, her eyes wide.

"More important than us?" Megan asked, surprised.

"But playing is so much better than reading," Nicole said, sitting up.

"Let's declare war on Klaus," I announced, placing my hands on my hips.

"Yeah!" They cried and nodded, eagerly.

"Maybe we can make a snowball and throw it at him," Claire said, giggling.

I shook my head. "It's a good idea but I don't want to ruin his book. I just want him to play with us."

"How about you lure him to us," Megan said, "and then we'll start throwing snow balls at him."

I put my hand on my chin, pretending to be thinking. "I think it'll work. Go hide behind those big rocks over there," I said, pointing to some large rocks at the edge of the snow-covered field, "I'll get Klaus."

They giggled and got off the monkey bars to go hide behind the rocks. I walked around the jungle gym so I was behind Klaus. That way, he wouldn't see me coming. I hid behind a tree nearby and waited a few minutes before I started to sneak up behind him. Before he could stop me, I snatched the book from his hands.

"Hey," he cried, looking up at me. He laughed, "give it back."

"Uh, uh," I said, stepping backwards with the book behind my back, "not unless you play with us."

Klaus got up from the bench. "Give me my book, Jane," he said but I saw a hint of amusement in his eyes.

"You'll have to catch me first," I challenged and began to run towards the large rocks. I heard Klaus running after me and I couldn't hold in the peals of laughter that escaped. Klaus was laughing too.

As I got closer to the rocks I turned to the right and quickly put the book down on a nearby bench.

"Fire!" I shouted, turning around as snowballs flew out from behind the rocks.

The first one hit Klaus directly in the stomach but the others missed.

"Hey," he cried. Then he grinned at me, "alright Jane. This means war!"

The other girls cheered and got out from behind the rock. They began throwing snowballs at each other and at Klaus and I.

Klaus and I stooped to make our own snowballs. He threw one at me and I threw mine at him. I almost dodged his snowball but it hit my shoulder. The snowball I threw hit Klaus too. I laughed.

"I got you Klaus," I teased.

"I got you too, Jane," he said, grinning.

I cocked my head. "You don't know who you're up against," I said, "I'm pretty good at snowball fights." I created another snowball and threw it at him. It hit him in the shoulder and I laughed. Klaus gave me a sly look and threw another snowball at me. I jumped out of the way.

"Missed me, missed me," I taunted. I gathered up more snow. As I was getting up to throw another one, a snowball landed on the top of my head, soaking my hair. I gasped; my hands ran through my now wet hair.

I got up and saw Klaus chortling. I narrowed my eyes at him. So this was how he wanted to play? I picked up a snowball to throw it at him. It hit him in the chest. I laughed taking a step back as Klaus was about to throw another snowball at me. I regretted it immediately when I fell backwards on my butt. Klaus stared at me incredulously before he burst out laughing. I glared at him from the ground. That only seemed to make him laugh harder. He walked over and held his hand out to help me up but I pushed it away angrily.

"You're just lucky that I was wearing snowpants," I muttered as I got up from the ground.

While Klaus laughed wildly, I took aim at his own hair with a fresh snowball. I threw it and it just missed the top of his head. The snowball kept going and hit a teacher in the back.

The man turned around, angrily to see who had thrown it. Claire, Megan, Nicole, Klaus, and I stopped what we were doing and fell silent. We stared sheepishly at the teacher. But my sheepish stare turned into a frightened stare when I realized whom it was. I took a startled step next to Klaus, who looked just as scared. The man towered over us with short black hair on his head. He had two eyebrows instead of one but I could easily tell who he was because he stared back at me with shiny eyes.

* * *

I hope you liked it! R&R please!


	4. Mean

Here's the next chapter! Sorry it took so long...I've been very busy with school :(

**Note:** There is a little bit of coarse language in this chapter (mainly Melissa Sampson).

I said in the beginning that i would involve music a little bit into this so...a good song for Jane's POV for the fic in general that i found is: Forgiveness and Love by Miley Cyrus (don't hate me, i don't like Miley Cyrus but i still like a few of her songs)

Anyways...

Enjoy!

* * *

_**Jane Rumary**_

"We're sorry," Claire said, suddenly, "Jane didn't mean to hit you."

Count Olaf gave us a smile that showed all his teeth, which were surprisingly not as yellow. He probably whitened them. "Oh, no," he said, "that's alright."

"Are you a new teacher?" Nicole asked, coming out from behind the rock she had been using as a shelter.

"Yes I am," he said, "I'll be teaching Acting and directing the fifth grade play. What are your names?"

"I'm Megan and that's Claire, Nicole, Jane, and Klaus," Megan said, "We're all taking acting."

Count Olaf's eyes gleamed even brighter. "That's great. You can call me Alfonso."

"Okay," I said, quickly, "well, we're going to go play."

I picked up Klaus' book off of the bench and handed it to him.

"Have fun," Alfonso said, in a mockingly cheery tone.

I scowled. "We're not going to," I muttered, as we walked away towards the jungle gym.

Claire, Megan, and Nicole gave me odd looks. "What are you talking about Jane?" Megan asked.

"She means that the teacher," Klaus said, his voice hard, "is Count Olaf."

Their eyes widened. "You mean that bad man that is after your fortunes?" Nicole asked.

I nodded. "Yep."

"But how?" Claire asked, "He doesn't look like the Count Olaf you described. Didn't he have a gross tattoo on his ankle?"

"And one eyebrow?" Megan asked, looking disgusted.

"And yellow teeth?" Nicole asked, looking equally disgusted.

"He does," Klaus said, sitting down on the bench near us. I sat down beside him. I wasn't feeling well and being near Klaus made me feel a little better. "He's in disguise that's why."

"He probably waxed his eyebrows," I said, "and whitened his teeth. His tattoo is probably covered by something like it always is."

"And he's wearing a wig," Klaus said.

"You should tell the principal," Claire said, glancing nervously at where Alfonso stood, chatting with some other teachers, "he'll help you."

"We'll tell the principal," I said, "but I don't think it will work. The adults are harder to convince."

Klaus nodded in agreement. "One time he disguised himself as Captain Sham when we lived with our guardian Aunt Josephine," Klaus explained, "Aunt Josephine didn't believe us when we told her and when she did find out the truth…she was forced to write a fake suicide note that said we were to be placed in the care of Captain Sham. She really went to hide in a cave on the lake. Mr. Poe, who's in charge of our affairs almost let Captain Sham adopt us. Luckily Sunny, my younger sister, bit open the peg leg he wore to cover his real leg and tattoo. It was almost too late." Their eyes widened like saucers.

"What should we do?" Claire asked, "Can we help?"

I glanced at Klaus who shared my horror at the idea.

"No," I said, shaking my head, "you shouldn't get involved. He's dangerous and I don't want him to hurt any of you. Don't let him know you know who he is either or he might go after you."

They nodded. "We can help you in secret ways," Nicole suggested, "so he won't find out."

"Maybe," Klaus said, though he didn't seem to like the idea. We had no idea what Count Olaf was planning this time. What if it was something even worse than last time?

* * *

_**Violet Baudelaire**_

Violet began her classes for the day. After dropping Sunny off and making sure she was okay, Violet headed over to her first class, Physics. Violet wasn't one of those girls who had problems with their self-esteem. But she wouldn't have minded walking to class with someone. Maybe she would meet other people who shared similar interests today. She was excited for Engineering and she hoped that the class would be a challenge so that she could be more creative in her inventing skills. Maybe she'll pick up some new inventions that could possibly be used to protect Klaus, Sunny, Jane, and herself from Count Olaf when he came. Although the school looked very secure, Violet wasn't too sure that Count Olaf would give up. He had said to her that he would get his hands on the Baudelaire's fortune and Jane's fortune, if it were the last thing he ever did. So Violet would have to be prepared for when he did come.

Violet entered the room where Physics would be taught and furrowed her eyebrows when she found that the only empty seat in the room was beside Melissa Sampson. Violet was confused when she saw her. Melissa was in seventh grade…so why was she here?

"Hi," Violet said, quietly, as she sat down and took out her Physics binder from her book bag.

"Hey, Violet," she said, casually as if she didn't really care. She was concentrating on the book she was reading. Violet saw that she was reading _The Catcher in the Rye_. It surprised her that someone like Melissa, would be interested in reading for enjoyment.

"Is that book for school?" Violet asked as she pulled back her hair with her red ribbon. She wanted to be able to focus today so she could catch up on whatever she had missed. Violet hoped that if she worked hard enough, she would move from Honors Physics to AP Physics the following year.

"No," Melissa said, shortly, "Don't you ever read for enjoyment?"

"All of the time," Violet said, happy for something to talk about with Melissa. Violet hoped that if she got on Melissa's good side, if she had one, then Melissa might at least be a little nicer to her, "my parents used to have an enormous library filled with tons of books. It was my favorite place to go."

Melissa rolled her eyes. "I only read books that mean something to me," she said, "so you can save the conversation about fossils or whatever you read about for someone who cares."

Violet looked away towards the front of the classroom. She raked her brain for something to say.

"I thought you were in seventh grade," Violet said, cautiously incase she set Melissa off again.

"I am," Melissa said in a foul tone.

"Then, why…?"

Melissa shrugged. "At my last school I was in a higher science than everyone else. Seventh grade science is way too easy so the principal moved me to this class. Besides, it's not like I have much else to do around here than study and I like Physics. Here, I can design things to work the way I want them to. Similar to engineering which I was allowed to take because of this advanced science class."

"I didn't know you liked physics or engineering," Violet said.

"Surprising, huh?" Melissa said, twirling the pen she was holding.

"I'm an inventor," Violet said, "in fact, I've had to invent all sorts of things to save my siblings and our friend in the past few months."

Melissa gave Violet a curious look. "I didn't ask for your life's story."

Violet looked away again. Before she could think of anything else to say that wouldn't involve asking Melissa why she was so rude or why she tells lies that only hurt herself, but the teacher, Mr. Hall, came in and started the class. They were just finished a unit on air and flight. Now they were going to learn about how rollercoaster's function. They mostly took notes today to prepare for an upcoming lab assignment so Violet didn't have much time to worry about making conversation with Melissa.

Afterward Violet went to her History class followed by Latin, the language she had chosen to take. Violet had Business next and then Math. Violet was in the same math class as Melissa, however, Violet was assigned a seat away from her. Instead she sat next to Julia, the older sister of Jane's friend, Claire. Julia was nice and when the bell rang for Lunch, Julia invited Violet to join her and her friends at their table.

The seventh and eighth graders ate lunch at the same time as the freshmen and sophomores on certain days according to their schedule. Melissa was sitting at an empty table in the corner, still clutching her copy of _The Catcher in the Rye_. Violet had a tinge of guilt and felt like she should invite Melissa to sit with her, Julia, and her friends. But Violet had already brought up Melissa when they were talking about classes and all of them had said that Melissa was nothing but trouble and shouldn't be allowed to take freshmen classes.

Lunch was almost over and students were already throwing away their garbage and heading to their next class. Violet followed Julia and her friends as they made their way to the exit. They passed by Melissa's table just as five girls that looked like they were seventh graders too, walked over to Melissa's table, carrying their trays of food.

At first Violet thought that they might be her friends but when they reached the table, in turn, each of the girls plopped their trays down in front of Melissa.

"You look like a garbage can," one of them sneered and the others laughed.

Melissa scowled at them. "And you look like a hag from hell," she sneered back.

The girls glanced at each other and laughed as if they thought Melissa was foolish.

One of the girls noticed Melissa's book that was lying on the table next to her. She picked it up.

"Is this book yours?" she asked, dangling the book above Melissa.

Melissa glared at her. "Yes it is," she growled, "take your filthy hands off of it." Melissa reached up to snatch it but the girl merely shrugged and tossed it to her friend who walked over to the closest garbage can and held it over it. Melissa started toward it.

"Don't you dare drop it," Melissa snarled, "Give it here, now!"

"Sorry," the girl holding the book over the garbage said, though she didn't sound sorry at all. "But it's a waste of paper. I say it belongs in the garbage. Which is why you probably like the book so much since it looks like you belong in the garbage too. If you want your precious book, you'll have to do something for us first." The girl nodded to the trays.

Melissa glowered at her but didn't say or do anything. The girl gave her a sly grin and started to remove one finger at a time until the book was starting to fall into the garbage.

"Alright, fine," Melissa snapped and picked up the trays. She started toward where the trays were supposed to go at the end of meals. As she stepped forward, one of the girls closest to her played the same trick that had been played on Klaus not too long ago. The girl stuck her leg out and Melissa tripped. The trays flew from her grasp, sauce from the spaghetti that had been served spilled on the front of her shirt.

She cried out in anger and got up from the ground to face the sniggering girls. The one holding the book laughed the loudest. Another girl had her cell phone out and she snapped a photo of Melissa.

There were two teachers chatting in the middle of the cafeteria. They heard the laughing and turned around to see what was going on. They were both male teachers and Violet gasped when she recognized one of them.

He had black hair that was obviously a wig that was shaped in a way that people would call, 'the Justin Bieber' style except that the person who wore was a lot older than the pop singer. He had two eyebrows and wore long pants that went past his ankles. Violet knew immediately that it was Count Olaf. Her thoughts jumped to her siblings and Jane Rumary. She just hoped that they were okay.

The teacher and the villain in disguise walked over to the girls. Count Olaf glanced quickly in Violet's direction. Even though, Olaf was a distance away from Violet, she could still see his eyes shining brightly. Violet shuddered.

Violet was jolted from her panicked thoughts when the teacher that Count Olaf was with addressed the girls. "What is going on?" the teacher asked, noticing Melissa's soiled top.

"Melissa was just being clumsy and she tripped," One of the girls said. The girl holding the book had quickly moved it from where she held it over the garbage.

"I wasn't being _clumsy_," Melissa snapped, "they tripped me and they stole my book too."

"We didn't trip you, Mel," one of the girls said, "And if we did, it wasn't on purpose."

"We were just joking around about your book," the girl near the garbage added, "we were going to give it back."

Melissa opened her mouth to retort but was interrupted by Count Olaf.

"You shouldn't tell lies, little girl," Olaf said. As he said this, he glanced quickly at Violet as if in warning. "You might get yourself into a lot of trouble."

"Who the hell are you?" Melissa said, rudely.

"This is Alfonso," the teacher said, "he'll be teaching the fifth grade acting class. But anyways, someone tripping and spilling sauce on theirselves isn't something to laugh about no matter who's fault it was. Now, give the book back to Melissa and I hope I won't see you make fun of anyone like that again. Melissa, I hope you won't speak to a teacher like that again or you'll be in trouble too. "

"We're sorry," one of them said to Melissa. She didn't sound sorry at all. "we won't do it again."

"Melissa, you should go get yourself cleaned up before classes resume," the teacher said.

The teacher and Alfonso walked away muttering something about how rude children were.

"You're such a tattle tale," one of the girls said to Melissa when the teacher and Alfonso was out of earshot.

The girl standing near the garbage still had Melissa's book and without a second thought, she threw it into the garbage before they all walked away, giggling some more.

Julia and her friends hadn't seen everything that had happened like Violet had. They frowned at each other and whispered things like how rude Melissa was. Violet didn't care what they thought. Her parents had taught her to always do the right thing even when other people are doing wrong. Those girls were just immature and mean.

Violet walked over to where Melissa was, near the garbage can. She was trying to reach her book without falling in or touching anything gross. Violet wouldn't normally reach into a garbage can but she felt guilty about what had happened. She felt sorry because she had watched Melissa be bullied by those girls like everyone else and she didn't stand for Melissa the way she should have.

Violet reached into the garbage and pulled out the book. Fortunately, only crumbs had stuck to the book and not the yogurt that someone had thrown out.

"Here," Violet said. She held the book out for Melissa to take.

Melissa snatched the book away from Violet. "I didn't ask for your help," she grumbled, "I can take care of myself."

Melissa adjusted her top that was covered in sauce and hurried for the exit before Violet could say another word.


	5. Warning

I'm back with another chapter!

(I know i already used 'Warning' as a chapter title but there's really no other way to put it)

This fic is probably going to be a little slow in this chapter and sort of the next but i promise this is building up to something really intense. lol :)

Also, i know that in the first chapter i said Company was on Monday's but i'm changing it to every day of the week except for Friday's.

* * *

**Chapter Five: Warning**

**Jane Rumary**

The rest of the day was horrible. Klaus and I could barely focus in any of our classes. Science and Social Studies were blurs. In Gym, we had free time to do what we wanted. Claire and Nicole who were in our class jumped rope while Klaus and I just tossed a basketball back and forth. I was glad that I had grown up in Canada when we had French class so I already knew the material we were covering and I didn't have to focus much. We were only learning verbs like avoir and faire. My next class was Jazz with Megan but Klaus had his American Literature class. I was reluctant to part from Klaus. It made me feel uncomfortable that I wasn't there to make sure he was okay. Ever since he was hypnotized, I've been terrified of something worse happening to him. I hoped Violet and Sunny were okay too. Before I knew it, Acting was next.

We slowly trudged across the snow-covered campus over to the building where the auditorium was. Klaus and I had stopped at our lockers before so we didn't The high school's gym was in the same building as well as a few studios.

I glanced at Klaus who was staring worriedly at the door.

"I-I'm scared too," I said, quietly, "I mean…what _if_ something happens to you or your siblings? I don't want to lose any of you."

Klaus stared into my eyes. "We'll just have to be careful," Klaus said, "including you. Okay?"

I nodded and we slowly headed inside the auditorium. There was no sign of Alfonso inside.

"It looks like we have a sub today," Claire said, as Klaus and I found two seats beside them. Claire was looking pointedly at the elderly teacher who stood at the front. He was talking to a few students who sat in the front row.

"Maybe Count Olaf was caught," Megan said.

"Maybe," I said, though it made me grimace. I knew better than that. He was probably somewhere on campus planning ways to get our fortune.

Klaus and I relaxed, knowing we would have a bit longer to adjust to school before Alfonso came into the picture. I wasn't up to listening to him brag about his acting skills or anything else.

The class was fun, despite our worrying. The sub let us play improv games for the entire class since Alfonso didn't give him many instructions. Actually, the substitute explained that his absence was due to how he had only just arrived today and he was too tired to teach.

The bell that signaled the end of classes for the day rang. Some people filed out of the auditorium but mostly everyone stayed.

"Are you two staying for Company?" Claire asked, as she played with a stray piece of her red hair.

After everything that had happened today, I had completely forgotten about Company. Klaus was looking at me, probably waiting for me to answer. I figured that he probably wanted to stay close to wherever I was. He wasn't comfortable splitting up either.

"What do you think, Klaus?" I asked, "Alfonso isn't even here to monitor the club like he's supposed to."

Klaus hesitated before he nodded in agreement. "I suppose you're right. What is Company?"

Megan launched into an explanation of what Company was; Basically, a club for anyone with an interest in acting, singing, dance, photography, or playwriting/directing.

When everyone was settled into the auditorium the seniors greeted everyone before announcing that anyone who wanted to perform something for their winter show must audition. It wasn't so much an audition but it was to see which performances were good enough to show in front of an audience. The audition wasn't until Wednesday of next week but I was still nervous. I wanted to perform but the thing was that…I'd never actually sung in front of anyone before except for Klaus. Drops of Jupiter hardly counted though.

They told us to go and work. Claire, Megan, and Nicole said that they wanted to work on a song they were all going to perform. They invited me to come and join them but I said that I wanted to work on a song on my own. Klaus came with me.

Klaus and I walked out of the auditorium and found an empty studio that we were allowed to practice in. I shut the door behind us. The studio was small with a black rubbery dance floor and a large mirror hung on one of the white walls. Ballerina bars bordered nearly three sides of the room. A few chairs were stacked along the far wall.

But what caught my attention immediately was the magnificent black Steinway piano that was pushed into the corner. A window above the piano had a simple, yet pretty, view. Just the forest behind the black fence could be seen and as eerie as the forest was at night, during the day it truly was beautiful. Squirrels nestled in the trunks of trees or chased each other in the soft, white snow. Some were busy collecting nuts for the winter while birds who hadn't departed south for the winter yet sang their sweet melodies from the trees.

I turned my gaze from the window and back to the piano. I felt a kind of homey feeling whenever I was around one. I'd never really had a home, at least one that I could remember and the piano made me feel closer to home than ever; from the familiar smell of polished wood to the smooth white keys.

I sat down on the cool, smooth black piano bench and looked expectantly at Klaus.

"Okay," I said, "What song are you going to sing?"

"Jane," Klaus said, "Don't be silly. I'm not singing anything."

"We'll see about that," I sing songed. "Don't you want to be in the show like I do?"

Klaus shrugged. "I do but singing is not something I'm good at," Klaus said, "what if we wrote a play of some sort. I wouldn't mind that."

I paused. "I do like that idea," I said, "but I don't think we'll be able to write, cast, and direct a short play in just a few days. Learning a song won't be hard."

"I think you're forgetting that I honestly can't sing," Klaus said.

"That's because you've never tried it," I said.

"Jane, you should sing," Klaus said, "I'll listen but I seriously can't."

"No," I said, "you have to sing for me too. This is a two way street, mister."

"Fine," Klaus said.

"What do you want to sing?" I asked.

"I don't know," Klaus said.

"What's one of your favorite songs?" I asked.

Klaus hesitated to think of a reply. "How about that song that we heard on the radio on the car ride here? Desperado by the Eagles."

I beamed. "I love that song," I said.

Klaus gave me a warm smile. "Then I'll sing it."

"O-okay," I said suddenly distracted by his warm brown eyes. I loved the Eagles. They were one of my top favorite bands because of Hotel California and Desperado. I grew to like most of their songs and well…I liked Klaus too and…him singing my favorite song was something that made me like him even more.

"Jane?" Klaus said, "Are you okay? You seem distracted."

"Um…yes," I said, "I'm just…uh…okay I'll find you some lyrics."

"Sure," Klaus said.

I searched the songbooks and found the Best of the Eagles Songbook that also had the guitar and piano part. Not that I needed it for this song. I knew it off by heart. 'Hotel California', one of their songs, was one of the reasons why I tried to teach myself how to play the guitar.

"Okay," I said, "Ready?"

Klaus nodded though he gave me a nervous look. "I really can't sing," he said,

"I don't care," I said, "because no matter what you say, you are going to sing or else."

"Or else?" Klaus raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"Or else…well I haven't exactly thought it through but it'll probably have something to do with another snowball attack at recess."

Klaus chuckled. "Be careful, Jane," he said, "I'm pretty good at snowball fights. I always had snowball fights with my siblings and parents when they were alive. I was always on my father's team. My mother and Violet were on the other team. Sunny liked to cheer for either team. My father and I always won."

I smiled. "Well, then I guess you haven't really met me because I have good aim."

Klaus opened his mouth to argue but I interrupted him.

"No stalling," I cried, pushing his shoulder lightly. I abruptly began to play the intro before Klaus could distract me further. I had to play it twice because Klaus missed his cue.

"Jane, I seriously can't," Klaus said again.

"Just sing," I demanded probably a little too loud.

I started the intro again and Klaus opened his mouth but nothing came out.

"Do you want me to start?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"We'll start together," Klaus said.

"Fine," I said. I started again.

"Desperado, why don't you come to your senses?" Klaus and I both sang.

"You been out ridin' fences for so long now.

Oh, you're a hard one,

But I know that you got your reasons.

These things that are pleasin' you,

Can hurt you somehow."

I decided that this would be the point where I stopped singing.

"Don't you draw the queen of diamonds, boy," Klaus who didn't realize I had stopped singing until after he had sung the line as if no one was listening. He almost stopped completely but I narrowed my eyes at him so he kept going.

"She'll beat you if she's able,

You know the queen of hearts is always your best bet.

Now it seems to me, some fine things,

Have been laid upon your table,

But you only want the ones that you can't get."

I found myself struggling to play the right notes as I listened. Honestly, I was blown away by his voice. It wasn't like Justin Timberlake, Darren Criss, or Michael Bublé. But that didn't mean it sounded terrible at all. He sounded more like John Mayer or the Fray, combined with the Maroon 5. But what made me nearly freeze when playing was the fact that every note made my heart beat quicken. By the time I controlled myself again he was almost finished.

"Don't your feet get cold in the wintertime?

The sky won't snow and the sun won't shine,

It's hard to tell the nighttime from the day.

You're losin' all your highs and lows,

Ain't it funny how the feeling goes away?

Desperado, why don't you come to your senses?

Come down from your fences, open the gate

It may be rainin', but there's a rainbow above you.

You better let somebody love you,

You better let somebody love you,

before it's too late."

I finished playing and barely glanced up after. I was breathless and I could hardly think. Maybe I was being a little dramatic but…I couldn't help it.

"What did you think?" Klaus said, his cheeks going a little pink, "Was it terrible?"

I looked up and our eyes met. His brown eyes bored into mine. "N-no," I managed, "not at all."

Klaus rolled his eyes and smirked. "Whatever you say, Jane," he said, "But I really don't believe you. Do you think you could teach me how to play the guitar though?"

I nodded, smiling. "Of course."

"And now it's your turn," Klaus said, sounding relieved that he was no longer on the spot.

I folded my arms across my chest. "Alright should I sing a Broadway song or a song that you would hear on the radio?"

"Broadway," Klaus said.

I groaned. "That's the worst kind." I loved Broadway music but singing it in front of someone always made me really nervous. I was fine singing Taylor Swift or Colbie Callait. It would be nerve-wracking but at least I wouldn't have to belt so much.

The only Broadway songs that I'd really been practicing were all songs from Wicked, Thirteen, or Les Miserables. So I chose the Lamest Place in the World from Thirteen because I knew it better. I was a little nervous about the huge belting note towards the end but it was better than On My Own, the Wizard and I, or Defying Gravity. I was not ready to hit that high F note.

"Alright," I said, "I know which one I'm going to sing." I walked over to the songbooks and picked out one from Thirteen. I opened the book. "I don't know how I'm going to have to stand because I really can't hit those notes while sitting."

"Is there a disc in the songbook?" Klaus asked, "maybe there's an instrumental version on it. I would offer to play the piano for you, but I don't know how."

"Don't worry," I said, "I'll teach you. By the time its June and we're still here, you'll be like Mozart or Beethoven except with more edge."

I found a disc and popped it in the little CD player perched on a counter nearby.

It started to play immediately.

"Can you not look at me?" I asked, timidly.

Klaus turned around but it was no use since he could still see me through the mirror.

"Cover your eyes," I said, "…and maybe even your ears."

"Jane, hurry up and sing," Klaus said, covering his eyes. "or else." Klaus mimicked my earlier comment.

"Alright, alright." I pushed play and the melody played.

I sang:

"Down the road, there's a dairy queen

Up the block, there's a Walmart

There's a place you can accessorize your pets

A school, a tree, a couple of churches

And no matter how hard anybody searches

That's about as thrilling as this dumb-ass village gets." I stopped singing, feeling my cheeks turn pink. "Alright that's it."

Klaus frowned and lowered his hands from his eyes. "That's it?"

"Yep," I said.

Klaus cocked an eyebrow. "You're not very good at lying."

"I'm not-"

"So I sang that entire song for nothing?" Klaus said.

"No…" I said, "you got to hear me sing."

"Jane," Klaus said, "if you can't sing in front of me, how are you going to handle the auditions?"

I sighed. "I have no idea," I said, "but I'll probably mess up. I just know it."

"Don't be silly, Jane," Klaus said, "you just need to practice. And if I were to suggest anything, I would say that you should try to tell the story a little more."

"I guess you're right," I said, "I'll start again."

I started again:

"Down the road there's a Dairy Queen,

Up the block there's a Walmart,

There's a place you can accessorize your pets."

I stopped again, nervous about how that looked. I had tried to use some gestures.

Klaus was thinking. "That was good," he said, "but you should try a little more. I don't have much experience with this kind of thing but my mother used to do theater. She always said that the most important thing that any actor should know for a performance is that it has to be real. You're trying too hard. All actors pull from experience, right? So you should try that too. Who is Patrice singing this to?"

"Evan, the main character," I said, "Evan just moved to her town and they spent the summer together. Patrice is his friend and she's kind of showing him around but she's a little flirty about it. Later you find out that Patrice has a crush on Evan."

"Alright so try to draw from a crush that you've had or have," Klaus said, "you don't have to tell me just think about how you felt when you sing it. In fact, I'll be Evan for you and you can just pretend I'm one of the boys you liked."

"O-okay," I said, not wanting to admit out loud who I had a crush on.

I started again and tried to use Klaus' advice. It wasn't too hard since Klaus was the boy I had a crush on and so I tried to make Patrice be a little flirty:

"Down the road there's a Dairy Queen,

Up the block there's a Walmart,

There's a place you can accessorize your pets.

A school, a tree, a couple of churches,

And no matter how hard anybody searches,

That's about as thrilling as this dumb-ass village gets."

Klaus smiled encouragingly at me. I began to relax a little as I got more into the character.

"It's the lamest place in the world,

But it just got a little bit better,

So don't disappear.

It's the lamest place in the world.

But I'm pretty sure,

It's not as lame as it was before,

Now that you're here.

Forty miles to the nearest river

Sixty miles to the airport

When we plan our escape, that's where we're going to have to be

It's a shame, it's a sham, it's a terrible pity

You got dragged away from New York City

It's major suck for you but it's amazing luck for me

It's the lamest place in the world

But it just got a little bit better

I'm happy to say

It's the lamest place in the world

You're completely exotic

Intellectual neurotic

You would never have a shot except

You've found the perfect guide

And though I don't really know you

I can hardly wait to show you." I was beaming now as I sang.

"Every fake and freak

Every fool and clown

Since the Chippewa settled this stupid town

Let and laugh

They won't keep me down

With you by my side…." I was having such a good time that the belting note came easily. Klaus was smiling, excitedly when I sang the note.

"And it just got a little bit better

Amazing but true

Yes, the lamest place in the world

Has lots of flaws

But maybe it'll be fine because

It brought me to you."

I stopped and was breathing heavily. I giggled from the rush I got from singing in front of an audience especially the way I had. I always wanted to be a lead in shows because I knew it would give me a feeling that I owned the stage. The stage was mine.

Klaus wasn't smiling though. He was frowning at something behind me. I guess I'd been so distracted by singing that I barely noticed Klaus' expression change. I glanced behind me.

"Hello, children."

My smile faded abruptly at Alfonso's sudden appearance in the doorway. I grabbed Klaus' wrist and stood firmly beside him, hoping the action would hide the fear I felt.

"I heard you singing from my office next door and I thought I'd come by and see who it was," Alfonso said, "That was a wonderful performance by the way." I nearly scoffed at Alfonso's mocking tone.

"What do you really want?" Klaus said, narrowing his eyes.

"Well if you must know," Alfonso said, his eyes shining brightly, "auditions for the school play are tomorrow after school. You both should come. I'm looking for a good Alice. Maybe you'll get it little girl."

"We'll think about coming," I said, quietly.

Alfonso gave us a nasty smile that showed all of his strangely white teeth.

"I can't wait," he said, "Well, goodbye for now. I have a lot of work to do."

Alfonso shut the door and walked away.

I shakily sat down on the black piano bench, leaving room for Klaus to sit down beside me. His expression was hard.

"What do you think he's planning?" I asked.

"I don't know," Klaus said, quietly, "but I'm worried about the audition. What if he hurts you?"

"I'll be okay," I said, "besides, I don't want to lose this opportunity that I've been waiting to happen for a long time because of Count Olaf. I'm not going to let him take the one of the only things that I have left."

Klaus sighed. "Maybe."

I spent the rest of the time, teaching Klaus to play the guitar. We were both slacking a little. We were too scared to really accomplish much.

* * *

After dinner that night, Klaus and I hurried across the bridge to the Administrative Building. Violet would meet us there with Sunny soon. We were going to Mr. Lance's office to tell him about Alfonso.

We reached the second floor and waited in Room 5. Violet and Sunny came after a few minutes. Both of them looked just as worried as we were.

"Hello, children," Mr. Lance said as he entered the office, "what's the problem?"

"Count Olaf is here," Violet blurted, "he's disguised as the new acting teacher."

Mr. Lance gave us a curious look. "That's ridiculous," he said, "we put him into our security system. And Alfonso is a very smart and generous man. He's also a very good actor. He doesn't need your fortune. With his talent I'm sure he has been able to make a great living."

"That's because Count Olaf is disguised as Alfonso," Klaus said, "His wig is obviously fake."

"Alfonso looks nothing like the man you described, " Mr. Lance disagreed, "Alfonso has two eyebrows and I'm sure if you looked at his ankle, you wouldn't see a tattoo of an eye there. And it is rude to make such judgements about someone for wearing a wig. Baldness can happen to anyone."

"We're positive that he's here," I said.

"Look," Mr. Lance said, "our school is recognized for being safe. It would be nearly impossible for Count Olaf to get in. I don't think you're in any danger."

I knew that was of course entirely untrue. Even the safest school's can't keep all danger away."

Violet opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by a knock on the door. Mr. Lance went to open it.

"Ah, Alfonso," he said, "how are you?"

"I'm excellent," he said. Alfonso walked into the room, his eyes shone brightly when he saw us, looking and sounding strangely like Mr. Burns from the Simpsons except for the wig. "Hello, children. Oh and Klaus and Jane, I met you earlier today. Twice. And you are taking my acting class correct?"

Klaus and I nodded, stiffly.

"See," Mr. Lance said, "there's nothing to worry about."

"What were they worried about?" Alfonso asked Mr. Lance, "This is a great school."

"Well," Mr. Lance said, "they think that Count Olaf is on campus. He's a despicable man who's after their fortunes."

"That's impossible," Alfonso said, "the school's security system is the best I've ever seen. Aren't you recognized in the New York Times for being safe?"

"That's what I said," Mr. Lance said, "now, children, I'm busy so we can talk some other time."

"Arna!" Sunny shrieked.

"My sister means," Violet explained, "'aren't you going to check Alfonso's ankle?'"

"My ankle?" Alfonso said looking surprised, "what for?"

"According to the banker who's in charge of their affairs," Mr. Lance explained, "Count Olaf has a tattoo of an eye on his left ankle."

Alfonso nodded in understanding. "Well I admit, that I do have a tattoo on my ankle but it looks nothing like an eye. Would you like to see it?"

Alfonso lifted his foot up and rested it right on my armrest. I scooted away but I could still smell his nasty breath, which no amount of whitening could erase, as he rolled up his pant leg. Everyone turned to stare at the tattoo on his ankle. I gaped when I saw that instead of the eye that I hoped to see, in its place was a symbol that looked like three eyes without the pupils that were entertwined.

"It's a symbol of unity," Alfonso explained, "I am of Christian faith therefore it symbolizes my faith. My grandfather was a bishop and my father is a priest. Of course, I decided to choose a different path and spread religion through acting. So you see, I could never be this Count Olaf you described. I have done things that I am not proud of but never would I choose to harm anyone, especially these adorable children."

The Baudelaire's and I were so in disbelief that we couldn't find words to describe how wrong it was. Count Olaf was the last person who would ever be religious.

"Well that clears everything up," Mr. Lance said, "a religious man like you could never steal from these orphans. My aunt is a reverend in her community and she is just a lovely woman. It's good to know that the children are in good hands."

"Why thank you," Alfonso said, putting his foot back down on the floor, "Now if you don't mind, I'm going to bed. I'm still very tired which was exactly why I wasn't able to teach today."

"I'm tired too," the principal said, "I'm sure you children are exhausted as well. Now off you go to bed."

He moved us from his office, including Alfonso, and shut the door.

We glanced worriedly back at Alfonso before we headed for the elevators. The doors opened and we stepped inside. Before the doors could close Alfonso strode inside.

"Going down?" he said, as the door closed and pushed the lobby button anyways.

The Baudelaire's and I were pressed against the back of the elevator, afraid of what he was going to do.

"So you think I'm this Count Omar man?" he said, casually.

"We don't think," I said, "we know. You're Count Olaf not Omar."

"What are you talking about silly girl?" Alfonso said, "I am Alfonso, a noble man who teaches acting to young people like yourself."

"You're far from noble," Violet said.

"I think we've both had our fair share of sins," Alfonso said, "but God is always forgiving, correct? And I've asked him for forgiveness."

"Forgiveness is something you have to earn," I said, "and how could you be so religious? Do you even know all ten commandments?"

"Of course I do," Alfonso said, "But I've never even heard of the name Count Olaf before."

"We know you're Count Olaf," Klaus repeated, firmly, "it doesn't matter how you try to hide your tattoo."

Alfonso's eyes darkened. "Well if I were this Count Olaf," he snarled, "then I probably would tear out your eyes for behaving so rudely. Not to mention I might accidentally slip and this knife will slice off all ten of your fingers." He pulled a long, sharp knife from his pocket. "I figured you would have learned by now not to disobey me so I'll warn you now. If you ever try that again, the next time I find you alone, you may end up losing a finger or worse."

We shuddered. Alfonso stowed his knife away just as the doors to the elevator opened again. He strode out of the elevator and out the lobby doors.

We shakily walked out of the elevator.

"What are we going to do?" Violet asked.

"I don't know," Klaus said, "We don't even know what he's planning."

"How can he get us in his clutches here?" I said, "Killing Mr. Lance wouldn't help him and he can't get us fired like last time."

"Woldo!" Sunny shrieked, which meant, "Maybe he's planning on kidnapping us."

"I wouldn't be surprised if it was his plan," I said, "but if he was planning to kidnap us, he probably would have done it already."

"We should all just be careful," Violet said, "But Klaus and Jane, you two need to be especially careful. Don't let him get you alone." Violet shuddered.

"Aslada!" Sunny agreed.

"We'll try," I managed to whisper. I knew Alfonso's presence would only bring misery upon us and I wished I could just crawl under my covers and not deal with it. But I knew I had to be brave.

We gloomily walked back to our dorm. Snow drifted from the sky again but I barely noticed.

* * *

The songs are Lamest Place in the World by Thirteen and Desperado by the Eagles incase you want to know.

Please Review! :)

What do you think?

I'll update soon!


	6. The Audition

Here's a new chapter! Jane and Klaus audition for the play Through the Looking Glass with none other than Alfonso as the director.

* * *

**Chapter Six: The Audition**

The next morning was just as bad as yesterday afternoon. Klaus and I were too worried to focus on anything. We barely spoke to Nicole, Claire, and Megan and we mostly just stuck together.

By the time it was recess all I wanted to do was sit on the bench and hope everything would somehow be okay. Klaus wasn't even in the mood for reading. We just sat on the bench together while Claire, Nicole, and Megan played. Luckily Alfonso wasn't a supervisor today so we were free of his mocking stare.

I absentmindedly stared at the ground.

"Hello."

A girl with dark brown hair that flowed past her shoulders stood in front of us. She had full lips that were curved into a sweet smile and olive green eyes. Another girl stood beside her and had cappuccino colored skin and smooth, dark hair that stopped at her shoulders. Her eyes were dark brown, almost black.

"Hi," I said shyly.

"Are you new here?" the other girl asked.

I nodded. "I'm Jane Rumary and this is my friend, Klaus Baudelaire."

"I'm Christina Warner," the brunette said.

"And I'm Kate Lawrence," the darker-skinned girl said.

"It's nice to meet you," Klaus said.

"You too," Christina said glancing at Klaus for a brief moment before turning her attention back on me, "actually, we're in your acting, gym, and jazz class. We're also in your math class, I think. I bet you were so humiliated yesterday when you had to go up to the front of the entire class like that on your first day."

"Yes, that was a little embarrassing," I said, nervously.

"We thought we should introduce ourselves," Kate said, "after all, it's your second day here. You're probably still a little shy, but there's nothing to worry about. You'll have such a great time here."

"That makes me feel a little better," I said.

Christina smiled kindly. "So where are you from?" Christina asked, sitting down beside me on the bench.

"Um…" I began, "We're both from Boston."

"Cool. We're from New York," Christina said, fiddling with a loose thread on her Abercrombie and Fitch skinny jeans, "our parents live in the city but we wanted to go to boarding school. We really wanted to go to Waverly but you have to be older so we came here."

"We visited the city before we came," Klaus said, "It's amazing there."

"Yeah," Kate said, sounding like she was not very interested in him. "Did you see Times Square at all?" She asked directly to me.

Klaus glanced at me quickly and walked away to leave me with Christina and Kate. He went to go talk to a couple of boys he said were in his American Literature Class. I hoped he wasn't mad at me.

In response to Kate's question, a grin spread across my face. "Yes," I said, excitedly, "I loved it there, especially at night. All of the lights were incredible and I'm dying to go to one of the Broadway shows or visit Abercrombie and Fitch on Fifth Avenue."

"That's where I got these," Christina said, pointing out her dark denim skinny jeans. "I also love Saks, have you ever been there?"

"Um…" I trailed off. I have never been to that store in my life because I never had enough money to buy anything, as it was all locked away in the bank. But these girls weren't interested in how I was abandoned by my parents and teased by other kids. If they knew that, they wouldn't like me or they would make fun of me. "Yes, actually. I just haven't been there in a while."

"Why aren't you wearing any Abercrombie or Holister _or_ Saks?" Kate asked. She looked at my plain white turtleneck and faded jeans that were too big as if it was the ugliest outfit she had ever seen. I couldn't deny it either. I wished I had better clothes to wear so I looked cool like them. "You'd look so much better in those clothes, no offense."

"No, not at all. I hate these clothes. I…" I faltered. Well I couldn't pretend that I had parents, that wouldn't end well, so I came up with something that explained it all. "Well…my parents…um…died recently," I explained, "that's mostly why I'm here. They were killed in a fire that destroyed my home and everything in it. I lost all of my good clothes. The only clothes I have now are made of the worst fabric and itch all of the time. It kind of sucks."

Kate and Christina exchanged glances. They gave me apologetic looks. "Oh my gosh," Kate said, "We're sorry. We didn't realize."

"That's terrible," Christina added, "You don't have any money at all?"

"I do," I said, honestly, "but it's inheritance money that I'm not allowed to use until I'm eighteen."

Christina gave me a small smile. "Well…maybe if you wanted you could borrow some of our clothes sometimes."

I smiled gratefully. "Thanks," I said, "but you don't have to."

"Oh come on," Kate said, "you should totally try something on at least. Maybe after school tomorrow, you could come and pick something out to wear. Christina just had makeup sent to her by her mom. Maybe we could give each other makeovers."

I beamed. "That would be really fun," I said, eagerly. It sounded so cliché and girly that we were going to give each other makeovers but I was excited nonetheless because I'd always wanted to do all of those girly things. "It's been so long since I've felt put together."

"Great," Christina said, looking just as eager, "We're in Room 304 so come by after class tomorrow."

"That sounds cool," I said, truly excited. Never in my life have I ever been invited to anything at all. Carmelita Spats invited me to her birthday once but it didn't count because even though we went to Chuck-E-Cheese, I didn't have any money for tokens. Carmelita and her friends hogged the jungle gym and got the other kids who didn't go to my school to block all of the tunnels so all I could do was sit and watch the guy dressed up in the mouse costume take pictures with everyone. There was also an incident with cake that I won't mention but it didn't go well. In fact, that was the day she came up with the nickname Cakesniffer that she called me and anyone else who she didn't like. Again, I won't recall the details of what happened. I'll only say that it was humiliating and it was one of the main reasons why I hated her and why she hated me.

"Well, we'll see you later then," Christina said and they walked away.

As soon as they were gone I heard footsteps. I turned and saw Nicole, Megan, and Claire approach looking a little irritated.

"What's wrong?" I asked, confused.

"Them," Claire said, in almost a growl, "those girls you were just talking to."

I knitted my eyebrows together. "Christina and Kate," I said, "what's wrong with them?"

"Everything," Megan said, balling up her fists, "We hate them and they hate us."

"They've been mean to us for as long as we can remember," Nicole said, just as upset, "What did they have to say to you?"

"They invited me to hangout after class," I replied, "They don't seem that mean."

Claire rolled her eyes. "Maybe to you because you're new," she said, "but they always pick on us."

"Didn't you see Christina in jazz yesterday?" Megan asked.

I thought back to Jazz yesterday. I could barely remember anything that happened because I'd been so focused on Alfonso being here.

I shook my head. "I was kind of distracted, remember?" I said.

Megan nodded, understanding. "Well she made a rude comment about my leaps," she said, "And last week, Christina told me I looked like a spas and I should quit jazz to avoid any further embarrassment. Then she just laughed and went to go tell Kate about how funny she thought it was."

"Oh," I said, not sure what to say, "That sounds mean."

"Exactly," Nicole said, "and they can be a lot worse. So I really don't think you should hang out with them."

I opened and closed my mouth not knowing how to explain. Secretly, I didn't care that much about how Christina and Kate treated them. That didn't mean they would do that to me, they seemed to like me. Claire, Megan, and Nicole never cared about how horrible I had to dress because my parents died. They didn't offer to let me borrow their clothing either. Not that I was being spoiled or anything because I probably would have refused but it's the thought that counts. But I didn't want to lose them as my friends either.

"Well," I began, "I kind of already agreed to hang out with them and I can't just say 'no' now. But tomorrow I'll try to keep my distance from them."

Nicole gave me a tight smile. "I guess that's okay," she said, "we just don't want them to do something really horrible to you."

I nodded. At that moment the bell rang and it was time for our next classes.

"How did everything go?" Klaus asked as I reached him.

"Good," I said, cheerfully, "I'm sorry they weren't that nice to you though. They just don't know you like I do. I'll be sure to tell them how smart you are and then they'll pay loads of attention to you."

Klaus chuckled. "Maybe," he said, "but I don't mind whether they want to be my friend or not. I've been making other friends and I'm just happy that you're getting along here too."

"Thank you," I said, "I'm happy for you too and guess what?"

Klaus cocked an eyebrow.

"They invited me to hang out with them after school," I said, excitedly, "they told me that I could borrow an outfit to wear tomorrow. They said I should wear better clothes than this, and frankly, I agree with them. I look so plain in this." I gestured to my outfit.

"That's great," Klaus said, looking happy for me, "but just know that you don't have to dress up in all kinds of frilly clothes just to make people like you."

"I know that," I said, "but it's still fun to wear cool clothes that actually fit and aren't itchy. Besides, I like to dress well because it puts me in a better mood."

"There's nothing wrong with that," Klaus said, "especially now that it's been so hard to find any joy in our lives."

"Yes," I agreed and we shared a smile. "It'll be enough to help me get through the audition this afternoon."

Klaus frowned. "I'm a little worried about that," he admitted, "I want you to have this opportunity but…you know…"

"Yes," I said, "but Olaf isn't a hypnosis and he can't just kidnap me or hurt me. if it does happen just scream as loud as you can. This school is populated enough that someone will hear."

Klaus nodded. "So I guess that means I'm auditioning too," he said, sounding more like he was stating a fact than asking a question.

"How did you guess," I said, playfully shoving his shoulder, "it'll be easy for you because I'm sure you already read Through the Looking Glass…or have I finally found a book that you haven't read?"

"I grew up with Alice in Wonderland, Jane," Klaus said, "I've read the story more times than I've seen the movie."

"You are such a bookworm," I muttered, giggling.

"And you are such a drama queen," Klaus mimicked my tone.

"I know, right?" I said, flipping my hair dramatically. That made Klaus laugh and for the first time since Alfonso arrived, we were somewhat happy.

* * *

After Science, Social Studies, and English Klaus and I went to gym. Kate and Christina were in my gym class and they said 'hi' to me. We were starting volleyball and I was put on Christina's team. I was a little nervous about playing because I was never really good at sports other than tennis or running. Christina didn't make fun of me when I missed the ball and she didn't call me a spas, instead, she laughed and said she was really bad at volleyball too and not to worry. That made me feel better, although I could still sense Nicole's hard glare at my back whenever I talked to Christina. I chose to ignore it. I was having a good time today despite the fact that I was so worried about Alfonso. Maybe being friends with Christina and Kate would be just a small mercy from my misery. Klaus was hanging out with some of his own friends, which made me happy for him.

In Jazz, there was a little drama as Megan, Nicole, Christina, and Kate were in my class. Today we began working on our routine and the teacher let us separate ourselves into groups of three. We were supposed to come up with our own mini routines that could be used in the dance for the show. We were going to perform next Friday night for the school. Christina and Kate immediately came over to me.

"Jane," Kate said, eagerly, "you so have to be in our group."

"We always come up with the best routines," Christina added, "Mrs. Johnson always picks from ours and we really want you to be in it."

I hesitated and glanced over at Megan and Nicole. They were shaking their heads and gesturing for me to join them. But Christina and Kate were so much cooler.

I looked back at them and smiled. "Okay," I said.

We worked on the mini routine and Christina and Kate had been right because Mrs. Johnson adored our routine and wrote some of the moves down to incorporate it into the show.

We walked to Acting together after Jazz. Klaus waited by the entrance for me. He was chatting with a couple of boys.

"Hi Jane," he said, as I approached with Christina and Kate. The two boys went inside the building.

"Hi Klaus," I said, cheerily.

"Where are Megan and the others?" Klaus asked.

I shrugged. "They went on ahead I think," I said, simply. "How was your class?"

"Good," Klaus said.

"Well come on, Jane," Kate said, "let's get inside the auditorium so we're not late."

"You can come with us," Christina said to Klaus, "your name is…"

"Klaus," he answered.

Kate smiled. "Cool."

We walked into the auditorium. Kate and Christina brought Klaus and I over to some seats away from Nicole, Claire, and Megan. A blond boy sat next to Kate and she gave him an excited greeting. I recognized him as the cute boy who had looked at me at breakfast yesterday.

"Hey Klaus," he said, "I didn't know you were taking Acting."

Klaus looked at the boy and gave him a slight smile. "I didn't think I would either," he admitted, "but Jane convinced me to take it."

The boy looked at me.

"Jane?" he said to me, "You're Klaus' friend, right?"

"Yes," I said, shyly.

"I'm Connor Samuels," the boy said, "Klaus is my roommate. I didn't know you're friends with Kate and Christina."

"Well," Christina said, "we kind of just became friends today."

"Cool," Connor Samuels said, giving me a warm smile.

Before anyone could say another word, Alfonso, who had shown up today, started the class.

"Hello children," he said, "I am your new acting teacher. You can all call me Alfonso."

A few kids muttered 'hello'.

"I've performed in many plays," Alfonso bragged, "and I have won many awards for my work. I can teach all of you everything you need to master the art of theater." He emphasized the word 'theater'. "Someday, if you do what I say, you'll all be as great an actor as I am. Acting has been around for as long as anyone can recall. Now, we're going to play a fun game."

Some kids made eager noises.

"I'm going to give each of you a slip of paper," he said, "it's going to have an emotion on it and everyone is going to have a turn to come up and act it out in a small scene using that emotion without speaking. Then everyone else will have to guess what emotion it is so don't show anyone."

More excited noises.

"I'm going to call out your name and then you can come up and get a slip from me," Alfonso said, picking up a clipboard. He began listing names. "…Clause Baudelire."

"It's _Klaus Baudelaire_," I said, as innocently as I could manage.

He ignored me and called out five more people. He paused to hand them slips of paper. Klaus walked slowly up to the front and took one, quickly. He hurried back to the seat beside me and opened it. He read it and frowned.

"What?" he said, in disbelief. He looked a little annoyed too.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Jane Rumary," Alfonso called.

"I'll be right back," I muttered, as I walked up to the front.

Alfonso gave me a smile that showed his weirdly whitened teeth as he gave me a folded up slip of paper. I took it quickly and walked back to my seat beside Klaus. I opened the slip of paper. In scrawling writing the paper read: '_Blondie_'

"What?" I said in the same tone Klaus had.

"What did he give you?" Klaus asked.

I showed him my slip of paper and we shared an odd look. Klaus showed me his slip of paper, which read: '_Bookworm_'

"Why would the teacher write that?" Kate asked, looking over my shoulder at my slip of paper.

"I don't know," I said, sighing heavily.

"Now, everyone find a place in the auditorium to rehearse your scene," Alfonso said. The class did as he said.

"Come on," I said, to Klaus, "let's get this sorted out." I got up and started up to the front where Alfonso was pretending to be looking at his clipboard but I saw him looking at Klaus and I out of the corner of his eye. He was smirking.

"Jane," Klaus said, "maybe we shouldn't…"

"He can't hurt us here," I said.

"What can I do for you two?" Alfonso asked, looking at us innocently as we approached.

"Blondie and bookworm," I said, crossing my arms, "are not emotions."

His shiny, blue eyes widened in surprise. "That's because adjectives are involved in the assignment too. I ran out of emotions for you two."

"Blondie," Klaus said, "isn't even a word. Blondie is the name of a band."

Alfonso's eyes brightened. "Well, look," he said, "you're already in character. Good job, Klaus, maybe you can teach Jane a few things about acting."

"Change it," I said, my voice hard.

Alfonso's eyes shined so brightly, it almost hurt to look at him. Then he lowered his voice so that only we could hear. "Alright, orphan," he said, angrily, "I'll change it." he snatched the slip of paper from my hands and crossed out the word 'blondie' and wrote something else instead. He did the same with Klaus' slip. He folded them up and gave them back. "You get, 'neglected'," he snarled as he handed one back to me. "And 'nervous' for you." He gave one to Klaus. "I'll be watching your every move, you brats and don't cross me again. Clearly, last night wasn't enough of a warning to behave nicely towards your new acting teacher and possibly director. And I know you told your little friends about me so let's just hope they're smart enough to keep their mouths shut."

"Leave them out of this," Klaus said, fiercely.

Alfonso's eyes gleamed. "Don't worry," he said, "I'll leave them alone as long as they don't stand in my way. But I'm not worried too much about those little girls. As long as Mr. Lance understands that I'm a nice acting teacher who's strong religious beliefs would never motivate me to steal or hurt any one." His hand moved to his neck and I realized he was wearing a gold necklace with a cross on it. He showed it to us. "And as long as you understand that I'm nothing but you're acting teacher and maybe your director. Now run along children, you only have five minutes until I call everyone back to perform."

Klaus and I turned and walked briskly away from Alfonso. We sat near the back of the auditorium.

"What are you doing for your scene?" I asked Klaus.

Klaus shook his head. "I have no idea," he muttered.

"I'll probably just pretend I'm back at my boarding school," I said, "that was a time in my life when I felt alone."

"That's the past, Jane," Klaus said, "don't waste your time thinking about those things. You're not alone anymore right?"

"No," I said, "though when you were hypnotized and Violet and Sunny left to go to the library, there was a moment where I felt alone again. I guess that was part of the reason why I snuck into Shirley's office. I was scared that I would lose you forever and I don't want that. I mean, you're my best friend. I've never really had a best friend before and well…you and your siblings…are so kind. I'm a little bit glad that I'm with you, even if Olaf is after our money. I'd much rather be where you three are than at my boarding school in Canada."

Klaus smiled. "I'm glad you're with us too. If it weren't for you, I'd probably be even more miserable than I already am. Having my best friend with me makes it easier to find reasons to be happy."

We shared a smile. My heart squeezed at his words. I blushed and looked away when I realized I had been staring.

Klaus changed the subject and told me about his American Literature class. I listened carefully. I liked when he talked to me about books in such an intelligent way. Any person can summarize a book they read but when Klaus talked about the books he read, he spoke in such a deep, and knowledgeable way that it made him seem like he was older or maybe the word I was looking for was wise. It blew my mind how smart he was sometimes and it made me want to be like him. I wanted to know everything he knew.

"Alright class," Alfonso projected his voice to be heard clearly, "it's time for you to perform your scenes. How about we start with…Jane Rumary?"

I sighed and stood up. Klaus went to go sit with Kate, Christina, and Connor. I strode to the front of the room and waited for everyone to get to their seats and for Alfonso to give me a cue.

I performed my small scene and after a few guesses, someone finally guessed lonely which was considered to be close enough.

It was Klaus' turn and it really wasn't difficult for him to pretend to be nervous. I tucked my legs up close and couldn't escape the dreadful feeling I felt as I watched him. Because after everything that had happened to us in the past, I was honestly terrified of what would happen this time. It made me want to curl up in my bed and hide from all of this. I didn't want something terrible to happen to the Baudelaire's because it wasn't fair. It wasn't fair that Olaf followed us everywhere just because we happened to be inheritors of money that was meant to support us when we were older so we could have a decent life.

Everyone else performed their scenes but Klaus and I paid little attention. Finally class ended and we were relieved before realizing that it was time for auditions, which were in Studio B.

"Are you auditioning for the play?" Christina asked us. Kate, Christina, and Connor walked with us from the auditorium. Connor left our group to go and meet his friends.

"Yes," I replied, "are you?"

"Of course," Kate said, "we always do. Last year Christina was Cinderella for the musical. I was one of the step sisters and Connor was none other than Prince Charming."

"Cool," I said, smiling. I was more nervous now. It sounded like they were really good. "Through the Looking Glass sounds like it'll be fun."

"I want to be Alice, but if not than, one of the queens," Kate said, "Christina will probably be Alice, though."

"Thanks," Christina said, "but I think Jane could be Alice. She already has her hair."

"Thanks," I said, shyly, "but I don't want to be Alice. I want to be the Red Queen. It just seems like a fun role to play."

"Jane is way too nice to play the Red Queen," Kate said.

I smiled nervously. "I don't know," I said, "but I guess I'd be happy with any role as long as I have lines and a character."

We arrived at the studio just as Alfonso came. Outside of the studios was a room that was almost like a waiting room with benches and plants. We were directed write down our names on a list before we had to sit down and wait for our turn. We were some of the last people to show. Christina and Kate went ahead and put their names down.

"I'll go last," I said, as I begun to write down my name, leaving a small gap for his name.

"No," Klaus stopped me halfway through, "Let me go last. I-"

"I'll be fine," I insisted, "you can wait outside for me after you're done."

Klaus sighed. "Alright, fine." Klaus wrote his name down above mine. "Let's go sit down. We can do our homework while we wait."

We sat down near Kate, Christina, and Connor who had rejoined us along with his friend, Will Davison. Klaus and I did our homework like we said we would.

"How's school so far?" someone asked. I looked up and almost jumped when I met Connor's dark blue eyes. Kate and Christina had gotten up to go talk to a few other girls who were waiting to audition. Klaus had left to go to use the restroom a couple of minutes ago and his friend, Will Davison was talking to some other guys. The number of people in the room had definitely decreased since we arrived.

"G-good," I replied, "The teachers are nice, at least most of them."

"You mean Mr. LaFont?" Connor said, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes," I said, "He hates me for some reason. I have no idea why."

Connor laughed. "Yeah," he agreed, "he hates me too. He caught me using my iPhone during class once and took it away. I haven't gotten it back yet and I'm not sure if I ever will. I'm not too worried though. I was going to buy a new one for Christmas anyways."

"That's good," I said, "He never calls on me even if I'm the only one who's hand is raised."

"Have you even learned anything from him?" Connor asked.

"No, not at all," I said, "he just gives us worksheets with multiplication and division problems. They're pretty simple."

"You're probably really smart," Connor said, "There are levels of math starting next year. I'm going into Pre-Algebra next year. Maybe we'll be in the same class."

"Hopefully," I said, giving him a kind smile.

Connor had to go then because it was his turn to audition. The room was nearly empty. The only people who were still here were Kate, Christina, Klaus, and…Megan. She was sitting by herself doing her homework. She seemed lonely and I suddenly felt a tinge of guilt.

Ten minutes went by and both Megan and Christina had auditioned. After another five minutes, it was Kate's turn.

"Is it almost time yet?" Klaus asked.

I looked at my watch. 4:30 pm was when Klaus was supposed to audition. It was five to which made my nervousness from earlier today come back.

"Five minutes," I answered.

Klaus nodded but gave me an uneasy smile. He sat down and opened his book.

"Don't be nervous," I said. Something gave me the feeling that Klaus wasn't just reading because he loved researching, "you'll do great."

"Thank you," Klaus said, "but I'm not sure if I'll even get a part. I could never be as good as any of these other boys auditioning. They seem as if they have been acting for years."

"Never say never," I said, "Don't make me repeat my Leonardo Dicaprio story again."

"Your anecdote for why I should act, as amazing as it is, is not needed," Klaus said, grinning, "Just you encouraging me to do this is enough."

"Next!" Alfonso announced as Kate walked briskly out of the room.

Klaus took a small step forward. Alfonso smiled nastily down at Klaus.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Alfonso said, "Hurry, hurry! I'm very busy."

He motioned for Klaus to go inside. Klaus glanced nervously back at me before he stepped inside the room.

Although, I knew there wasn't much Alfonso could do to hurt Klaus and not be caught, I was still anxious about Klaus being alone with him. I tried to focus on my homework but it was too hard when I knew what was to come.

Finally the doors opened again.

"Next!" Alfonso called as Klaus walked out of the room, looking relieved.

"How did it go?" I asked him quietly.

Klaus shook his head. "It wasn't as bad as it could have been. I think you'll be okay. I'll wait out here just incase."

"Good," I said.

Alfonso gave me a fake sweet smile when he saw I was the last one left to audition.

"Ah Jane, my favorite student," he said, placing a hand on my back, "Come in."

A little roughly, he pushed me into the studio before shutting the door.

"Now," he began, leading me to the center of the room, "I have to ask you some questions before you start."

"Like what?" I asked as Alfonso sat in a chair behind the table and took a sip of coffee.

"Your name," he said, getting ready to write it on his clipboard.

"You know my name," I muttered. "And technically, that isn't a question."

"What's your last name?" Alfonso asked.

"Rumary," I growled.

"And your middle name?" Alfonso asked, pressing the end of the pen before he wrote it down.

"Sophia," I answered.

Alfonso gave me an odd look but wrote it down.

"How old are you?"

"Let me think," I said, irritatedly, "hmm…I'm eighteen."

"If you were eighteen," Alfonso said, quietly, "you'd be dead and I would be filthy rich. What's your real age?"

"I'm ten," I muttered.

"Double-digits," he said, mockingly as if he thought my youth was something to make fun of.

"How old are you?" I asked, "One hundred?"

"No," Alfonso said, "I'm not going to answer that question because it's rude to ask an adult how old they are."

"Can I just start?" I asked impatiently.

"Not yet," he said, "I'm not done. What's your

height?"

"51 inches," I replied.

Alfonso smirked. "You're short."

I pouted. "I'm not a giant," I muttered, "besides I'm still ten. There's lots of time for me to grow."

"When's your birthday?" he asked.

"May 1st," I responded.

"Year?"

"1999."

Alfonso stared at me. "Is it just a coincidence that your birthday is on the exact same day as another child I met along time ago?"

"What?" I asked, confused. "Are you just asking anything now?"

Alfonso shook his head. "Never mind that was just apart of the questioning process. What year is it now?"

"Are you stupid?" I cried, "It's 2009. Almost 2010."

"I was just testing you," Alfonso said, "what's your favorite ice cream flavor?"

"It's called 'Stop asking me these stupid questions'," I fumed.

"Alright, fine," Alfonso grumbled, "Here." He handed me a copy of the play, "turn to page…2 and read for Alice. I'll read the part of the Mom."

I smirked. "This'll be fun," I muttered.

"Read." He demanded.

I cleared my throat and read the first line.

"Alice!" Alfonso cried in a fake girly voice.

I rolled my eyes and continued with the next line. I read on to the next page where Alice gets sucked into Looking Glass Land where the scene ends.

"Good," Alfonso said, "now turn to page 5 and read for the Red Queen."

I flipped to the page. I read for the Red Queen. I liked the role and I hoped I would get it. After I read for the White Queen.

"That's all," Alfonso said, when I was done. "You can leave now."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "So you're not going to kidnap me or something?" I asked.

"No," Alfonso said, "I would never do that. It would go against my religion."

"Sure," I said, sarcastically, "well, bye."

I hurried out of the room and breathed a sigh of relief. Klaus was waiting for me near the door. It seemed like he had been just as nervous about the audition as I was. But it was behind me now and all I could do was hope that Alfonso wouldn't give me a small role because of how he despised me. He would probably cast me as a random rock or a tree or some other inanimate object. For now, I was just happy to be at this school.

* * *

The next chapter gets really good so i'll try to update soon! R&R!


	7. The Ultimatum

Here's a new chapter! Jane is faced with an ultimatum that means nothing but misery.

ENJOY!

* * *

**Chapter Seven: The Ultimatum**

I arrived late to math the next morning. Mr. LaFont was angry with me and gave me trouble for being rude. It didn't bother me too much though. I was in a slightly good mood today. The callbacks for the bigger roles for Alice and Wonderland were posted today. Surprisingly, I was one of the four girls selected for callbacks. Only two boys got call backs, which were, Connor Samuels and Will Davison. Christina, Kate, Megan, and I had been selected for girl callbacks. I wasn't sure whether to be happy or cautious. I was a little concerned since Alfonso was the director. It surprised me that I even got one since Alfonso, of course, hates me. Despite being concerned, I couldn't help but be happy. I'd never gotten a callback and I was just so excited for that chance.

"Did you hear about the call-backs?" I asked Klaus while we worked on another worksheet.

"Yes, I did," Klaus said, "congratulations, Jane."

"Thank you. I'm sorry you didn't get one," I said, apologetically, "but you'll still get to be in the show. And callbacks are really just for the bigger roles. You might still get a good part."

"Of course," Klaus said, "I'm not too upset about it. After all, it is my first time acting."

We exchanged a smile.

After math I hurried to catch up to Christina and Kate who were at the doors. Klaus followed behind.

"Congratulations!" I said to both of them.

They smiled, excitedly. "You too, Jane!" Christina said.

"I guess we're going to have to miss Company again today," Kate said, "and we still can't decide on a song."

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"We're singing a two part song," Christina explained, "but we don't know what to sing."

"How about 'Home Sweet Home'?" I suggested, "Carrie Underwood's version."

They exchanged glances. Christina brightened. "That's a great song," she said, eagerly, "do you want to work on it with us? We don't have Company after school today but you're coming to our room afterwards, right? We can practice then."

"Cool," I said, cheerfully.

"We'll see you later Jane," Kate said. They left and Klaus and I headed to Art.

"I'm so excited," I said, eagerly to Klaus as we found our seats, "I've always loved that song and I'm so happy that they invited me to sing it with them."

Klaus smiled. "That's really great, Jane," Klaus said, "but don't you think you're spending a little too much time with girls you barely know? What happened with Megan, Claire, and Nicole?"

I shrugged. "I think they're jealous that I'm friends with other people," I said, "and it's not like I've known Claire, Megan, and Nicole for long either."

"They're jealous because they want you to talk to them more," Klaus said.

I shrugged. "Maybe," I muttered, "I don't even know if they will want to talk to me. They don't like Christina and Kate."

"At least try to talk to them," Klaus said, "'don't put all your eggs into one basket?'"

"Whatever you say, Klaus," I muttered.

I went back to work on my project. We were working with partners on it next week. Klaus and I wanted to work on the idea we had talked about on Monday. I felt a pair of eyes and when I looked behind me, I saw Connor Samuels looking at me. He looked away immediately when I glanced at him.

* * *

At lunch I decided to listen to Klaus and I approached my usual table with him. Megan, Nicole, and Claire were there. I sat down.

"Hey," I said.

They stared at me like I was an alien. Then they carried on as if I didn't exist. I furrowed my eyebrows. Well if they were going to be like that, then maybe they didn't want to be my friend.

I chatted quietly with Klaus who had noticed their ignorance too.

At recess I sat with Klaus and he told me about some of the stories he was reading in his American Literature Class.

The rest of the day leading up to Acting was like yesterday. I hung out with Kate and Christina in Gym and Jazz. In Acting we just played a few Improv games. We were starting scenes on Monday. Alfonso was his usual self, bragging about his acting skills and bossing everyone around.

Finally, it was time for callbacks. Klaus decided to go to Company and found someone to help him learn the guitar since I wasn't able to. He was starting to take an interest in it and had been practicing after doing his homework. He was doing well and it honestly impressed me.

I hurried to Studio B with Kate and Christina. Alfonso was already there, waiting by the door. His eyes shined brightly as he stared down at the three of us. The good thing about this audition was that we were all auditioning together. Megan was already there and Connor and Will were the last to arrive.

"Alright," Alfonso addressed us, "everyone here has been chosen to audition for the bigger roles of this show. I'm going to pair all of you up with someone. I'll assign the parts for each of you to read. I might ask you to switch roles but we'll talk about that when we get there. Now…you two girls," he pointed to Kate and Christina, "you pair up. Connor Samuels and Will Davison pair up and Megan Fuller and Jane Rumary work together."

I glanced nervously at Megan. She was angrier than the others. She wouldn't talk to me last night and didn't even want to watch a rerun of last week's Pretty Little Liars with me.

Everyone went to stand beside their partner. I walked over to stand beside Megan who was clearly still upset with me.

Alfonso went to the two groups and assigned the scene and the roles. He approached us.

"Hello, Megan and…"

"Jane," I muttered, trying not to roll my eyes.

"Right," Alfonso said. He assigned us a scene between Alice and the Red Queen.

"Jane read for Alice and Megan can read for the Red Queen," Alfonso said. "You have five minutes to read it over before you have to audition." He left us to practice the scene.

We read it over a couple of times, and then Megan stopped.

"I think we've got it," she said, irritated.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

Megan scowled. "You've been ditching us for those stupid, mean girls, that's what. And now you are probably just going to become exactly like them. It's already started."

"What are you talking about?" I said.

"You are going to get Alice and those two girls are going to be the next best roles," Megan said, "that's the way it happens here because they get everything they want and the rest of us are shafted with stupid roles. And it's really unfair because other people in this school are far more talented than they are and those people are barely noticed. Now you've been 'selected' by them and now you're going to get a big role. The director already favors you."

I narrowed my eyes. "You know the director does not favor me. Alfonso hates my guts and I didn't buy my way into this role because I'm a friend of theirs. Besides…I don't even want to be Alice. And just because I'm a friend of theirs doesn't mean I don't want to be friends with you too."

Megan ignored me, shaking her head.

I sat down in one the chairs and looked over my lines by myself.

Finally, Alfonso announced for us to gather around. Will and Connor were going to go first. They read for the role of the kings. Next, Christina and Kate read the scene between Alice and the White Queen. Christina was Alice first and Kate was assigned to read for the White Queen. Both auditions were very good which made me much more nervous. As much as I wanted a really big role, I knew there was a chance I wouldn't get a role like Alice. I was okay with that for now. As long as I got to be something close. That thought comforted my nerves a little bit.

Megan and I were up to read now. It wasn't hard for her to play the Red Queen since she already kind of hated me. Though, it seemed like now, Megan wasn't trying as much. I hoped she would get a good role too, even if we weren't friends. We were asked to switch roles. This time I was the Red Queen. Megan put more effort into playing Alice.

"Good job, everyone," Alfonso said, when we were done, though he sounded bored, "Now I'm going to give you new partners to read a different scene with. Will Davison and Kate Lawrence, Christina Warner and Megan Fuller, Connor Samuels and Jane Rumary."

I glanced over at Connor who waved me over.

"Hey, Jane," he said.

"Hey," I replied, "Good job with your audition."

"Thanks," Connor said, "You did well too. You would make a pretty tough Red Queen."

I chuckled. "Thanks."

Alfonso approached us.

"Hello," he said, eyeing us as if we were two shiny, lucky pennies. He gave us the scene. "Jane can play Alice and you, can play the Mad Hatter."

"Cool," Connor said.

I just nodded. Alfonso gave me one big smile before he left us. I shuddered.

"Is it just me, or is Alfonso really creepy," Connor muttered.

"It's not just you," I said, "I think he's creepy too. You have no idea how much."

"Well, there are other teachers in this school who are worse than he is," Connor said, "like Mr. LaFont."

I giggled, though I didn't really agree. But Connor didn't know the truth about Alfonso. "What did he do now?"

"He gave me detention for buttering my pencil during class," Connor said, "Do you know what buttering is?"

"Isn't it that pencil trick where you spin it on your fingers?"

"Yeah," Connor said, "It's pretty awesome but the teacher's hate it."

"I'm sure it is," I replied.

"I'll teach you how to do it," Connor continued, "if you want to learn how."

"Alright," I answered, "but first, we should probably read over our scene."

"Can't we just improvise?" Connor said, casually.

"We could," I said, "but it'll confuse us more than help us. So we'd better look it over, at least a couple times before."

"Sure," Connor said.

We practiced a few times. Connor was a funny Mad Hatter. I laughed a lot while we read it over. It was kind of a relief after the last scene with Megan. We auditioned first followed by Will and Kate. Christina and Megan read last. I noticed that they both despised working with each other.

"The cast list will be posted on Saturday," Alfonso announced, "I'm very excited to work with all of you." Alfonso's gaze flickered to me.

I narrowed my eyes and sat up straighter in my seat.

He dismissed us and everyone got up and started for the door.

"Good job, Jane," Christina said, pausing to wait for Kate. "I hope you get a good part like Alice."

"Thanks," I said, "I don't really want to play Alice though. I still like the Red Queen."

"Oh," Christina said, looking away.

"What's wrong?" I asked, furrowing my eyebrows.

"Well," Christina tossed her hair. "I kind of want to be the Red Queen."

"Oh," I said, understanding, "I thought you wanted to be Alice."

"I did," Christina said, "but I don't know. The Red Queen just seems like the better role."

"Well," I said, "I hope whatever happens, we both get good parts."

"Yes," Christina agreed, smiling. "Let's promise that if one of us gets the Red Queen and the other doesn't, that the person who doesn't get it will be a good sport about it."

"And the person who does won't brag about it," I added.

"You're coming to our room with us right?" Kate asked as she approached.

"If that's okay with you two," I said.

"Cool," they said at the same time.

"Hold on."

Though I already knew he was in the room, his scratchy voice still made me jump. Alfonso approached the three of us.

"If you girls don't mind, I'd like to have a word with Jane," he said.

"What do you want?" I asked, trying not to grit my teeth.

"There's something important that I need to say to you," Alfonso said, "Alone, of course. Your friends can wait right outside if they want."

Christina and Kate shrugged and started for the door.

"We'll meet you at the room Jane," Kate called, "Room 304."

They left, leaving me alone with Alfonso.

"Okay," I sighed and turned to face Alfonso. I tried to keep my fear from showing and had to clench my fists tightly to keep from shaking. "What?"

Alfonso smiled which made me shudder. "I have some news," Alfonso said.

I frowned. "Am I supposed to be excited about this?" I said, nervously. What did he want? I took a small step backwards.

"You should be," Alfonso said, "I have some pretty good news."

"What is it then?"

"I've been in a very good mood lately," Alfonso said, "it's so exciting to be able to teach kids such as yourself to be as great an actor as I am, though none of you could ever compare to my talents. I would perform the entire play all by myself if it weren't for you kids. But that's beside the point. What I'm trying to say is that I've decided who's going to be who in the show."

"Already?"

"All except for who you're going to be," Alfonso said, studying me carefully.

"What were you thinking?" I asked, frowning. He was probably going to say he was having trouble deciding whether I should be a rock or a tree.

"I've had a bit of a problem deciding who should be Alice," Alfonso went on, "I've considered that one girl, Christina…? But I should be fair. I mean, you're audition was the best one."

I furrowed my eyebrows, more confused. "Um…really? Well…I don't think it was the best…"

"Oh, but it was," Alfonso insisted, his eyes were shining brightly and he looked as if this amused him, "in fact, I think you should be Alice."

"Thanks, but I don't really want to be Alice," I said, "I want to be the Red Queen."

Alfonso smiled. "Then you should be the Red Queen."

I gaped. "I…I don't know." I was surprised, why was he giving me the role?

"Why, do you not want to be Red Queen," Alfonso said, growing slightly irritated, "because I'm sure there's another girl who would be-"

"No," I said, "I do want to be the Red Queen. Gosh, I've wanted to be a big role in a show for as long as I can remember. I've always gotten ensemble or a smaller part with no lines. I did a play involving a mime once and apparently I wasn't quiet enough to play the role. It was mostly because I couldn't afford to be in the plays. As a compromise, if I agreed to clean the cafeteria and do other jobs at the school, they would let me be ensemble. I did it though, because I love anything to do with performing. I know I'm rambling on, but I really do want a big part. I'll have all of my blocking and lines memorized. I'll memorize the entire play if I have to. My point is that I'll be prepared to do anything."

"Then I guess you got lucky this time," Alfonso said, smiling so I could see his weirdly whitened teeth, "Lucky that a more experienced and professional actor is here to see your true talents."

"I guess so," I said, uneasily, "so…is that all you wanted to tell me?"

"No," Alfonso said, "That's everything."

I turned for the door. Alfonso stepped aside to let me through.

"Bye, Jane," Alfonso said, giving me a little wave as I walked out.

"Bye," I whispered as I walked down the hallway and stepped out into the cold.

I was so confused about what just happened and I couldn't even find a reason to explain it. Of course, it could be part of his scheme…but how? How would giving me the part that I wanted more than anything benefit Alfonso?

* * *

I knocked two times on the door that said it was Room 304. After a few minutes, the door swung open revealing Kate who smiled brightly at me.

"Hey!" she said, excitedly, "Jane's here."

"Well, come on," Christina said, "I've got the straightener heating up in the bathroom.

Kate grabbed my arm and led me inside.

Their room was similar to my room except the walls were decorated with posters. One was of Justin Bieber and then there was another of Lady Gaga. There was a third poster of Taylor Lautner, which I didn't mind at all. Twilight hadn't been my most favorite book series but I still loved watching the movies just for Taylor Lautner. Jacob was my favorite because he was Bella's best friend but Edward was also my favorite because he was so sweet and selfless. I couldn't decide between the two. I didn't like Bella though, she always seemed so miserable when I would give anything to have a life like hers. I'd moved on from Twilight now. I was reading Pretty Little Liars now.

Anyways, on the two beds, bunches of make up items were spread out from Bare Essentials to Lady Gaga's pink lipstick. There were also bottles of nail polish and remover. A stack of magazines like Seventeen and Teen Vogue were in a pile on the ground where Christina was reclining back against one of the beds. She had been looking through one of the magazines.

Kate sat down and I timidly sat down beside her.

"Okay," Kate said, "let's start with Jane."

"I'll go get the hair brush," Christina said, getting up to go into the bathroom. She retrieved the hairbrush and a bottle of hair spray.

Kate and Christina started working on my hair.

"Jane, you have such pretty hair," Christina commented, "like a Barbie doll's."

"Thanks," I said, smiling to myself. I loved getting compliments, especially from Christina and Kate since they were so pretty.

They moved on from brushing my hair to straightening it.

"Jane is such an ordinary name," Kate muttered. My eyebrows knitted together. What did she mean by that? Kate seemed to realize what she said because she added. "I mean, for you it is."

"I know what you mean," Christina agreed, "it's a pretty name, sure, but you seem like you should have a different name."

"What about Janie?" Kate suggested, "That's more you."

I pursed my lips. I actually liked the sound of it. 'Janie' did seem cooler than Jane. Maybe they were right.

"I like it," I said.

"Great," Christina said, "So for now on, we'll call you Janie."

I smiled, liking the idea.

We continued to talk as they finished with my hair. Then, it was Christina and afterwards, Kate's turn to have their hair done. I mostly watched since I didn't feel comfortable doing much other than spraying hairspray. It would be horrific if I accidentally burned their hair. I'd never actually used a straightener before.

Soon we were applying each other's make up while talking about our day.

"Have you seen anyone who you like?" Christina asked as we decorated our nails with pink OPI nail polish. We all got the same on our fingers to match each other. I painted my toes red. I was just waiting for them to dry.

I felt my face turn slightly red.

Kate gasped. "You do like someone," she said, eagerly, "who is it?"

"Um…no one," I mumbled.

"Oh, come on, Janie," Christina urged, "we won't tell."

"Promise," Kate said.

I pursed my lips. I wanted to tell them the truth. I wanted to say that I liked Klaus but…what if he found out? We were just friends. So I went with the first name that came to my mind.

"Um…Connor…"

"Connor Samuels?" Christina said, excitedly.

"Oh my gosh, Janie," Kate said, "you should have said something earlier. We would have put in a good word for you."

"Please don't," I said, "I don't want him to find out."

"What if you went with him to the dance?" Kate said, giddily, "You guys would look adorable together. Especially now."

I blushed. "Thanks. There's a dance?"

"No one told you yet?" Christina asked, surprised, "there's an annual fifth grade winter dance. It's next weekend and it's totally going to be awesome."

"We should totally try to get Connor to ask you," Kate said, "who knows, he might already like you. You probably just have to let him know, in a subtle way, that you like him. Have you ever talked to him?"

"Sort of," I said, "today at the audition he talked to me and yesterday too."

They beamed.

"Oh my gosh!" Christina cried, "Janie is going to go with Connor Samuels!"

I giggled nervously. "I've never been asked to anything before. Actually, I've never been to a dance before."

They exchanged glances.

"Don't worry," Christina said, "that's why you have us. We'll help you."

"Totally," Kate said, as she added a second coat of blue nail polish to her toes. "We'll find you something really cute to wear."

"How can you be sure that he's going to ask me?" I asked, "Just because he talks to me can't mean anything."

"That's another reason why you have us," Kate said, "we're really good friends with Connor and we could ask him what he thinks of you."

"Um…okay," I said, "please be subtle about it, though."

I liked how enthusiastic they were about Connor asking me to the dance. I thought Connor was handsome and he's probably athletic. He's probably that typical boy in chick flicks that the main girl has a secret crush on. But as handsome and charming as he was…there was only one boy who I wanted to go with to the dance. Klaus. I'd never be able to tell anyone that, though. So it was best to pretend to like Connor. It couldn't hurt. And he just might like me back, though I really doubted it.

I closed my mind to my thoughts about Klaus and continued to listen to my friends gush about Connor Samuels.

* * *

The next day was the usual. Except today, I wore an outfit borrowed from Kate, I put on some makeup, my hair was straightened, and I had a cool, new nickname. After we had finished beautifying ourselves last night, we had also rehearsed the song, 'Home Sweet Home' for Company. It sounded really good so far. All of this made my day so much better.

Klaus, Violet, and Sunny were already at breakfast. Klaus was in line getting a bowl of cereal.

"Look, look!" I cried as I hurried over.

Klaus looked up and dropped his spoon, which fell to the floor with a _clink_.

"Oops!" I reached down, picked up the spoon and put it in the bin for dirty dishes. I turned back to Klaus. I realized I had done all of this really quickly and Klaus barely had much time to react before I began to babble again. "Notice anything different?"

Klaus blinked. "You have a lot of energy for someone who stayed up late watching reruns of Glee," Klaus commented, grinning, "Did you have a milkshake before coming here?"

I shoved his arm playfully. "No, I did not." I said. I couldn't help but grin. "Guess again."

Klaus snorted at my obvious giddiness. But I couldn't help it. I was just so excited that I finally looked decent. I felt like I could take on the world. For the first time in my life, I felt like an ordinary girl and that thought made it impossible not to smile.

"You're wearing make up," Klaus said, "and a new outfit."

"Yes!" I cried. I grabbed the box of Coco Puffs and dumped a bunch of them in my bowl. I grabbed a small carton of milk and we walked over to our table. Violet and Sunny were there, eating their cereal.

Violet noticed right away.

"Jane, are you wearing make up?" Violet asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Actually," I said, "it's _Janie_ now. And yes I am totally wearing makeup."

"Dalu!" Sunny shrieked.

"My sister means," Violet explained, "why are we calling you _Janie_ now and why are you wearing makeup?"

"Janie is cooler than Jane," I explained, "Christina and Kate thinks it suits me more. I'm wearing makeup because it looks good and I want to."

"Are you okay with being called Janie?" Klaus asked.

"Yes, actually," I said, "Jane was too boring."

"I don't think it was," Klaus said, "I like your name."

Violet and Sunny nodded.

"Relax everyone," I said, "I like Janie. No one's pressuring me into being called Janie it's just a nickname."

"We just don't want you to be called something that you don't like," Violet said, "that's all."

"I know," I said, "but like I said, I'm cool with it. How do I look though? Did I put on too much makeup?"

"You look good," Violet said, "you've always been pretty."

"I agree," Klaus said, "just don't wear it all of the time. We still want to see your original face."

I shrugged. "Sure."

* * *

The day had gone great so far and I felt more like myself. I wasn't the quiet, dull looking girl in the background today.

It was in Acting when my mood took a turn.

"Everyone may leave except for Jane," Alfonso said after the bell rang signaling the end of class.

Everyone except for Klaus hurried out the door.

We looked over at Alfonso. I glared at him.

"What do you want?" I said, scathingly.

"That is no way to speak to your acting teacher," Alfonso said, "I just want to talk to you about something important."

"What's so important then?" I asked.

Alfonso's eyes were shining brightly. "Actually, this is something that is more private," he said, "perhaps you can tell your little boyfriend to go on ahead."

"I'm not going to be alone with you," I said, the auditorium was almost empty now, "so tell me what's so important now so we can go back to our dorm."

"I'm not going to bite," Alfonso said as the last few kids exited, leaving Klaus and I alone with Alfonso. "Besides, I have no intention of kidnapping you or anything. This has more to do with the play that you auditioned for. I have news about that...again."

"What are you going t-" Klaus began.

"Quiet, orphan," Alfonso said, "now leave so I can talk to your girlfriend."

"As long as you stop referring to us as boyfriend and girlfriend," I said.

"Fine," Alfonso said, mockingly, "leave, orphan, so I can talk to your friend who is a girl."

He grabbed the back of Klaus's collar, flung open the door, and threw him out into the hall.

"I'll meet you outside," I mouthed to Klaus as Alfonso closed the door on his bewildered expression.

Alfonso turned to address me.

"Hello, Jane," he said, his eyes shone brightly.

"Janie," I corrected him.

"What did you call me?" Alfonso said, looking offended.

"My name is Janie," I said, again.

"_Jamie_?" his eyes widened and he looked like he was going to explode. With either happiness or anger…I wasn't really sure.

"_Ja-nie_," I said again, pronouncing each syllable.

Alfonso composed himself. He coughed. "Hmm. I must've heard wrong for a split second there. I'm supposed to call you Janie now, why?"

"It's my new nickname," I explained, "didn't you ever have a nickname?"

"Yes, yes, I did…" Alfonso looked as if he was thinking of a memory of his past. "Lots of them." He snapped, his eyes flashing with resentment.

I took a startled step back.

"Did I startle you?" Alfonso said, mockingly, "I apologize. Sometimes I sin too."

"What do you want?" I asked, uncertainly, pushing my confused thoughts about his strange reactions aside.

"Just a small favor," Alfonso said, "but you can't tell anyone. Alright?"

"I don't think I can make any promises until I know what it is that you want from me," I said, firmly.

"Of course," Alfonso said, and then lowered his voice, "See, I've been thinking of ways to adopt four lovely orphans who happen to be you and the Baudelaire's. I've been doing acting for a while and I'm starting to have a feeling that something is missing from my life. I didn't know what it was at first, but God showed me the light." Alfonso made a gesture at me. "Do you want to know what it was?"

"Money?"

"No," Alfonso growled, obviously annoyed at me for ruining his speech. "Children, of course. My one and only love perished a few years ago and I always regretted never having children. That's why I'm so happy I met you four."

"Maybe you're also happy because we have two enormous fortunes," I said, which made him scowl, "besides, even if you wanted to adopt us for that purpose, well, it wouldn't be possible without our approval and Mr. Poe's consent…" I trailed off as understanding slowly flooded my brain. "You want me to approve of you adopting us?" I gasped.

"Not the Baudelaire's," Alfonso said, his eyes shining brightly, "just for yourself."

I crossed my arms. "Now, why do you think I would do that?" I said.

"Oh, I'm sure there are plenty of reasons you could name for why I should adopt you," Alfonso said, "They're quite simple, actually."

"I'm not going to help you scheme to get my fortune or the Baudelaire's," I said, "that's equivalent to me helping you kill myself or the Baudelaire's and I'm not going to do that either."

"Oh, but I think you will," Alfonso said, "Once you hear everything I have to say. See, I gave you that big role for more reasons than just your _talent_."

I opened my mouth to speak but was interrupted.

"So here's what I want of you." Alfonso took a step closer and lowered his voice. "And if you want to keep your precious role, I suggest you listen to me."

"Do you actually think I'm that stupid?" I said, heading past Alfonso to the auditorium doors. "I'm not going to help you just so I can be some big role in the play. I like acting but I don't care that much."

I was almost to the doors but Alfonso ran up to the door I was exiting and blocked my path. I was about to turn for the door on the side of the auditorium but Alfonso grabbed my arm and yanked me forward so I was close enough to smell his disgusting breath which had remained despite his whitened teeth.

"Here's why you're going to help me," Alfonso said, darkly, "Because I'm the only person who you'll ever meet who knew your parents better than anyone."

"S-so," I said, my voice shaking, "h-how will that make me want to help you?"

"Because I know why your parents abandoned you and how they really died," Alfonso's eyes gleamed. "I could tell you everything you want to know. As long as you agree to letting me adopt you."

"Why do you just want me?" I asked, "Not that I want you to adopt the Baudelaire's or anything…"

"Well, that's part of the reason why I'm not taking the Baudelaire's," Alfonso said, "Three is way too much and it hasn't worked out in the past. I could take them one by one but why should I have to do that when I have one perfect orphan right here who doesn't have any siblings? It just seems easier to take you. But I guess if you want then I could take a Baudelaire. Klaus, perhaps…"

"No," I said, shaking my head fiercely, "not Klaus…"

Alfonso looked amused. "I was thinking about taking your boyfriend," he said, "see, that's another reason why I'm asking this of you. This isn't just a question. It's an offer and it's quite generous of me. I'm going to let you decide who I kidnap or adopt from this school. I could take you or I could snatch one of the Baudelaire's. I only need one of them to get their fortune, after all. But there's only one of you. So if I did take one of the Baudelaire's I'd have to kill them and return for the rest. But if you came with me, this would be much easier. I wouldn't have to kill you and maybe if you do I won't kill your friends. Maybe I'll even decide to spare you and your friends after I get your fortunes. So what'll it be, Jane, you or your friends?"

"I…I…," I stuttered. I wasn't sure what to say.

"Or if you want, once I snatch you, I'll leave the Baudelaire's alone," Alfonso said, "I'll never try to steal their fortune ever again."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "I…I don't know."

"Jane, Jane, come now," Alfonso said, patting me on the head, "I'm being so nice to you. The least you could do is repay me with this favor. Don't you want your friends to be safe? This is your chance to save your boyfriend from me."

"He's not my boyfriend," I muttered, looking away from Alfonso's shiny eyes that were boring into mine.

Alfonso tightened his grip on my arm and yanked on it so I was looking at him again. "Don't pretend you don't like him. Even a little bit. It was obvious when you were stupid enough to break into my office when I was still that nice receptionist, just to save him. Love makes people do the craziest things sometimes. I should know…" He laughed as if recalling some memory of his past.

"I…" I faltered again, fearfully. I didn't know what to do. Of course I cared about the Baudelaire's safety, but wasn't there some way that neither of us had to be in his clutches?

"Hurry up, orphan," Alfonso said, "I don't have all day."

"But what about the play?" I managed to ask; "There's really no point in giving me a big role if you're just going to whisk me away from here."

"Oh, I'm not going to take you yet," Alfonso said, "I'm having too much fun at this school. Besides, the next step is that you have to convince that boring principal and Mr. Poe that you want to let me adopt you. That may take some time. I'm looking forward to directing this play too, even though I don't like Lewis Carroll. So I've decided to wait at least a couple more weeks before."

I was silent.

"So what'll it be?" Alfonso asked again.

I bit my lip. I was still at a loss for words. But if I didn't agree…well then, the Baudelaire's would be in danger. Ever since I got to know them, I just loved how kind they were. No one had ever treated me with such generosity and they were so selfless, always worried for others safety. I had always been grateful to them for giving me that small mercy. After how generous they've been to me all of this time, I should do this. So they can be happy again, like they deserve to. And Klaus…I cared about him a lot. If going with Alfonso meant that Klaus would be safe from Alfonso then I would do it. For him, for them. I knew from the moment Alfonso said it that I would go with him. What left me befuddled was how scared I was of saying 'yes'. What would that mean for me? Only time would tell. For now, I had to put the Baudelaire's first. Finally I sighed in defeat.

"I-I'll do it," I stuttered. "For the Baudelaire's. As long as you promise to leave the Baudelaire's and their fortune alone."

"You have my word," Alfonso said, grinning triumphantly.

"C-can I go now?" I said, though it came out as a whisper.

"Of course," Alfonso said. Alfonso let go of my arm and stepped to the side.

I opened the door and began to walk out. Alfonso patted the top of my head as I passed by.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Jane," he said, his eyes shining brightly.

I nodded and stepped out into the hall. The door closed behind me and I stood paralyzed. I felt like I was on one of those roller coasters. One second, I felt really happy but all too soon my life was going downhill. What would Klaus think of my agreement? Could I tell him? I knew the answer right away. 'No,' I thought, 'Klaus would never let me go if I did. I wouldn't have the strength to do what had to be done.'

I stared at one of the studios, Studio D. The sign above the door made me jump. The letter that was clearly a 'D' but for a moment, the 'D' resembled an eye. I mentally shook myself and focused. Then I noticed the studio again. I looked inside and realized it was the same studio Klaus and I used on our first day here during Company. It felt like ages ago even though it had been less than two days. The piano sat in the same spot. I frowned as I stared at the smooth keys. For the first time in my life, I had no desire to play.

* * *

(For the Twilight little opinion part; Just know that it's not my opinion of Twilight, it's mostly Jane's opinion based on who she is, not me. So don't hate on me)

Review! Do you like it so far?

What should Jane/Janie do?


	8. Life Sucks

Here's a new chapter! I couldn't wait to upload this! There's some more Violet and Melissa things.

ENJOY!

* * *

**Chapter Eight: Life Sucks**

_**Jane Rumary**_

On Monday morning, I slowly trudged to math feeling as if a huge weight was on my shoulders. Snow swirled around me and black ice covered the path. Every school in the region was cancelled today except for our school. All of the other schools weren't boarding school's though. Apparently, this school never cancelled due to snow unless it was truly serious. I sighed. My day had already had a miserable beginning.

I frowned to myself. I was being a little negative lately because of what happened on Friday. I was mostly scared of what was going to happen to me afterwards. Alfonso had kept tabs on me all weekend, not that I did that much besides sulking, homework, or reading with Klaus.

I was still friends with Kate and Christina, which was good. We practiced for Company a lot this weekend. The only problem was when it became Saturday. The cast lists went up. I was, of course, the Red Queen (I had to pretend to be surprised about that since Klaus was with me). Kate was given the role of the Unicorn and Connor was going to be the Mad Hatter. He was thrilled about that, saying how he would give a performance as good as Johnny Depp's and his friend Will was casted as the Lion. Klaus was going to be Tweedledum. Klaus said he didn't mind the role. He'd always loved the Walrus and the Carpenter poem. He was fine with memorizing it. In fact, we spent a lot of the weekend memorizing the poem. I memorized a lot of my lines too because I wanted to be prepared to focus more on blocking than my lines at rehearsals. Also, my mind would be too preoccupied a lot this week because of what was to come that I wouldn't be able to focus much. Alice was given to…Megan. I was happy to see that she had gotten the role that she wanted. There was one person who wasn't all too happy about it, though.

"I can't believe Megan got casted as Alice," Christina said, flipping angrily through her new Teen Vogue magazine. I was hanging out in their room with them again. "Megan can't act for her life and she isn't even pretty."

"I totally agree," Kate said.

I bit my lip. Christina only said those things because she was upset and so I understood why she was being so rude. But I wasn't about to bad mouth Megan even if we weren't exactly friends anymore. Instead I said, "It's not so bad. You still got to be the White Queen. That's still a good role."

Christina's head snapped in my direction. Her eyes narrowed at me.

"You're right, Janie," she said, "it's not so bad. I mean, you're the Red Queen and I'm the White Queen. Everyone wins."

I was silent. Christina was awful to anyone who even spoke to her that day. She was annoyed with me too because I got casted as the Red Queen. I wasn't about to point out our agreement that we made, though. Christina would think I was a tool and it would upset her even more so I just left her alone. She would get over it eventually.

I entered the math classroom and waved to Christina and Kate as I found my seat beside Klaus.

"Hey Jane," Klaus said. He still called me Jane, despite how many times I told him to call me Janie.

"Hey K," I said. I had come up with a nickname for him as my way of revenge, though he didn't care too much.

Mr. LaFont started the lesson. He glanced at me a lot today for some reason, as if he expected me to misbehave. I noticed his hands were always clenched, though I couldn't be sure because he wore gloves all of the time and always kept his hands in his pockets. He never actually used to board to demonstrate anything. All he did with his hands was confiscate iPod's, cell phones, and other devices or he handed out worksheets.

In Art, Klaus and I sat together as usual. We were starting the construction of our castles. Klaus was in charge of measuring and I was in charge of cutting along the lines that he traced. As we were working, I glanced up through the window of the art building. As it was the November and in the morning, the sky was still a little dark, which looked a little eerie to me today. I guess it was mostly because, standing on the path behind the building was a tall man with black hair. He was staring at me with shiny eyes. I wasn't very focused today so it took me a moment before my head cleared enough to realize who it was. I jumped, dropping the scissors back on to the table.

My gaze had switched to the scissors for a brief moment. As I looked out the window again, he was gone. I shuddered. I'd been having nightmares all weekend having to do with the Alfonso version of Count Olaf. I never realized just how terrified I was of him until now.

"Jane." My vision refocused and I was staring at a hand waving furiously in front of my eyes. I blinked. Klaus was trying to get my attention.

"Jane, say something," he said.

"What?" I said.

"Is something wrong?" Klaus asked, "You were in a trance like you'd been hypnotized. Everything is okay, right?"

I blinked again, harder this time.

"Yeah," I replied, I tried to keep my voice from shaking, "I'm fine. I'm just tired, that's all."

Klaus smiled softly. "Please don't scare me like that," he said, "I was worried something involving Alfonso happened...you know."

I hesitated, thinking over my words so I didn't say something I would regret.

"Everything's fine," I lied, "I'll try to get a better sleep tonight."

* * *

Today, in Jazz we were supposed to pair up with someone to work on the dance with. I asked Christina if she wanted to work together.

"Actually," Christina said, "I promised Kate that I would work with her. Maybe another time."

Instead, I had to pair up with another girl who I didn't know very well. It wasn't all that bad, but I kind of wished I could work with someone I knew.

In Acting, everything got better. We were starting scenes and I decided to work with Klaus like I had promised. We had a good time looking through scenes. By the end of class, we found a scene. Alfonso stared mockingly at me as I worked which only made me more afraid.

Company followed. I worked on the song with Kate and Christina. Klaus continued to practice the guitar with a few friends he had made. I told Klaus that he was going to sing something for the Company show because I was too. Klaus reluctantly agreed because I told him that if he did, I wouldn't ever try to steal his books ever again (I did that often). Once it was because he wouldn't watch Glee with me:

"Why did you steal my book?" Klaus had asked when he found it was missing and narrowed down to one suspect.

"Technically," I began, "I didn't steal your book. See, I was going to give it back."

Klaus cocked an eyebrow. "Do you want me to steal your iPod for a day?"

"No," I said, "I want you to watch Glee with me so we can check out songs that I need to add to my iPod."

Klaus had grinned and finally agreed to watch Glee with me.

I secretly wanted him to sing because it would make my life feel a little less miserable if I could hear him perform.

Time had always been my enemy so before I knew it, the first day of rehearsal began.

The rehearsal itself wasn't bad. What was bad was what happened after rehearsal.

"Everyone may leave," Alfonso announced, "but I'd like to have a word with Jane Rumary."

Everyone filed out. Klaus stayed behind again.

"What does he want now?" Klaus asked.

"I don't know," I said, "you should go, though."

"No," Klaus said, "What if he hurts you?"

I shook my head. "He won't," I said, quietly, "I promise."

Klaus sighed. "I just wish I knew what he was planning."

"Y-yeah," I said, swallowing hard. Alfonso was approaching. He eyed Klaus. "You'd better go."

Klaus nodded and reluctantly left the auditorium. I took a slow, shaky breath.

"What, now?" I asked, "I already agreed to do it. What more do you want?"

"You only agreed to it," Alfonso said, "but you're not done yet. Now you have to convince that principal to hand you over to me. So, tomorrow evening, you are going to come up with an excuse so you can meet me at the fountain in the Administrative courtyard. From there, I'll explain what's going to happen. Come prepared with something to say. And come alone, or you'll regret it."

"I-is that all?" I asked.

"For now," Alfonso said, "If all goes well tomorrow night then we should be out of here after the performance."

I just nodded.

"Now run along, orphan," Alfonso muttered, "I've got some planning to do and I'm sure you do too."

I didn't hesitate. I hurried from the room, almost running into Klaus who stood in the foyer of the building. He caught my shoulders before I could crash into him.

"What happened?" he asked, glancing over my shoulder at the doors to the auditorium, "What did he say?"

"Nothing," I lied, "he was talking about the play. That's all."

"Are you sure you're okay?" Klaus asked.

I nodded stiffly, grabbed his wrist and began towing him outside.

"I feel like reading tonight," I said, "so let's hurry so we can get our homework done before."

* * *

_**Violet Baudelaire**_

Violet followed the girls to the auditorium on Monday afterschool. Julia and her friends were interested in arts so they were going to a club called Company. Jane and Klaus were involved in it too.

They entered the auditorium and immediately went to find something to do. Violet went with one of the girls who was in the process of filming a small movie. Violet was more interested in the technical elements of theater. Especially after the Marvelous Marriage, Violet had grown to despise anything to do with theater or marriage. it had become one of her pet peeves. She could only stand the technical parts.

Violet would've stayed at the common room and did her homework or worked on her inventions but ever since Alfonso arrived, she had been full of worry. She had a feeling that Alfonso might use the fifth grade Acting class and play as a way to target Jane or Klaus. She couldn't go to Acting to make sure that they were okay and she wasn't allowed to watch their rehearsals either. Company was her only way of watching over her brother and her friend.

Violet left the girl with the camera and went to go find Jane or her brother. She found Klaus playing a guitar with some other fifth grade boys.

"Hey Violet," Klaus said, "what are you doing here?"

"I thought it was better that we tried to stay together as much as possible," Violet explained, "where's Jane?"

"She's with her friends, practicing a song for the show," Klaus said.

Violet frowned. She didn't trust the girls Jane had begun to hang out with. She had hoped Jane would realize soon that those girls aren't her friends.

"I know when we arrived, I had hoped Jane would make new friends but I wish I hadn't," Klaus said.

"Why?" Violet asked her brother, curiously.

"She spends a lot of time with them," Klaus said, "she still hangs out with me but…well…last week, before she met those two girls, Jane told me she would teach me how to play the guitar…but now…she doesn't have time anymore."

Violet sat down beside her brother and sighed.

"Don't worry," she said, "Jane is young. Those girls make her feel good because they're popular and pretty. Though, I think Jane is prettier than them. But I think she feels accepted when she's with those girls. Jane is smart though, she'll realize soon enough who her real friends are."

"Hopefully," Klaus said, "I don't want her to get hurt."

"Me neither," Violet agreed, "actually I've come to think of Jane as my sister too, so we need to watch out for her. You'll do that, right?"

"Of course," Klaus replied, adjusting his glasses. "Maybe I'm complaining, though. Jane still pays attention to me. Last night we read together."

"She still insists that I read Pretty Little Liars and watch the television show," Violet said, a small grin appearing.

"She wants me to read it," Klaus said, chuckling, "she was really excited that she found a book that I hadn't already read. I explained to her that a book such as Pretty Little Liars didn't necessarily count."

They exchanged a smile.

"At least Jane is still our friend," Violet said, "and I'm sure if we told her to be careful, she would listen to us."

"I think so too," Klaus said, "she's been acting a little funny today, though. In Art she looked like she was in a daze. I'm worried about her."

"She's been acting strangely all weekend," Violet agreed, "whenever I asked if she was okay, she just started talking really fast about being exhausted and then said that she had to go."

Klaus frowned. "She won't tell me anything either," he said, "I wonder why."

"Did something happen on Friday that could have upset her?" Violet asked.

Klaus hesitated. "Well…nothing really bad happened. Jane seemed happy all day about her new look and her nickname. Except that at the end of the day…we were in Acting and Alfonso said he wanted to speak with Jane privately…"

"You stayed with her, right?" Violet asked, suddenly anxious.

"I couldn't," Klaus said, "Alfonso kicked me out."

"So something must have happened in there," Violet concluded. She was suddenly very afraid that monster had hurt Jane somehow. "what did she say to you afterwards?"

"She kept telling me that he had talked to her about the play," Klaus said, "She said that Alfonso wanted her to do one more reading from the play."

Violet's eyebrows furrowed. "Do you think she was telling the truth?" Violet asked.

"I can't be sure," Klaus said, "but what else could he have said to her?"

"I don't know," Violet said, she gazed at the other students. Amongst them was none other than Alfonso. Violet clenched her fists. What did that cruel man say to Jane to make her so upset?

She had begun to look away when a student approached Alfonso.

"Hey, you," Melissa Sampson snapped at him, "You're a teacher, right?"

"Yes I am a teacher," Alfonso said, "in fact, I am the fifth grade acting teacher. I've won many awards fo-"

"Do you really think I care?" Melissa growled. "Just give me the key to one of the studios."

"And why should I do that?" Alfonso said. He looked like he wanted to scratch her eyes out.

"Because those losers over there won't give me one," Melissa said, irritated, "So give me a key and I'll listen to your story about your 'many awards' later."

"I'm sorry, little girl," Alfonso said, using a term of endearment, though he didn't seem to find Melissa endearing at all. "I can't give you a key because I don't have one."

Melissa glared up at him. "Yes, you do," she spat, "I know you have one."

"Well, I'm afraid I can't give it to you," Alfonso said, "maybe if you had been a nicer little girl, I would give you that privilege. I think it would be best if you apologized to me and the others who you've offended."

Melissa fumed. "You think that I offended them?" Melissa half-shrieked, "Me, a seventh grader offended a group of Seniors? That's a load of bull!"

"Fine," Alfonso said, "if you want to be rude to people than you can save it for my office tomorrow for your lunch detention."

Melissa scowled but turned and stormed away.

Violet frowned to herself. Ever since that first day, Melissa had been ignoring Violet as much as possible. When Violet returned to their room at the end of the day, Melissa would be in the bathroom with the door locked. Eventually, she came out and went right to bed without saying a word to Violet. Occasionally, Melissa would pause to glare at Violet who was busy coming up with an invention that she wanted to show her Engineering teacher who was impressed by Violet's cleverness.

But Violet knew that there had to be a reason for Melissa's behavior towards people. She remembered how Principal Lance had told Violet that Melissa had lost her parents in a fire too. Maybe Violet could somehow get Melissa to talk about her parents and Violet could tell her about her own parents. Maybe Melissa would be nicer if she had someone who understood what she was going through.

"I have to go," Violet said to Klaus.

He nodded. "I'll keep an eye on Jane."

"Good," Violet said and they shared a brief smile.

Violet headed out of the auditorium and outside. Violet had a feeling Melissa would go to their room.

She was right. When she opened the door Melissa was in the bathroom again. Violet slowly walked into the room, closing the door behind her. She lightly knocked on the bathroom door.

"Melissa?"

"Go away!" she snapped. "I don't want to talk to you."

"Please, Melissa," Violet pleaded, "this has to stop. Those girls and Seniors aren't nice people. Maybe you should talk to someone about this."

Violet waited. There was silence, then the door flung open.

Melissa stood behind it, her face was red and a tear slid down her cheek. Her dark blue eyes were hard.

"Do you think that was the first time something like that has ever happened to me?" Melissa cried. "Do I seem like the kind of person, that people like to hang out with? I know I'm a bitch too."

"I'm sure there are people who like to be around you," Violet said, "but you just push them away."

Melissa's eyes flashed and she came out from the bathroom. "You're right, Violet," Melissa spat, "I do push people away. Do you want to know why?"

Violet didn't get the chance to respond because Melissa cut her off.

"Being bullied and picked on isn't new to me. And I try to pretend that it doesn't bother me but it does. I can't control how people treat me in life but I just…I'd rather push people away than let them in," Melissa said, through tears, "that way, they can't hurt me." Melissa slumped down on her bed and stared down at her hands. A few tears fell onto her palms.

Violet pursed her lips. "Not everybody wants to hurt you," She said.

"I thought so too," Melissa whispered. She seemed to be staring at something far away, maybe a memory. "I've always been teased and picked on. Even before I came here. But I was also adopted. The idea used to hurt me sometimes because I never got to know my real mother. My adoptive parents said she was really nice and she loved me more than anything. I don't know why it hurt me so much…knowing that I was adopted. I think it was the fact that I just couldn't understand it. If she loved me more than anything and she was really that nice, why would she give me up? My adoptive parents didn't know the answer either and it still hurts me."

"Some things in life will always be a mystery," Violet said, "my life hasn't exactly been very pleasant either. I still fail to understand why."

Melissa nodded in agreement. "But my adoptive parents…" She continued, "well they loved me enough that it made being adopted bearable. And then…well…"

"They were killed in an enormous fire," Violet continued, "Principal Lance told me."

Melissa glanced up and her eyes glistened with tears.

"I…um," Violet started when Melissa didn't speak, "my parents were killed in a fire too. It destroyed everything really. Not just my parents were lost in the fire. I lost my home, my friends, and I've almost lost my siblings a few times too. But it feels like I've lost parts of myself. My entire life fell apart and now this horrible man named Count Olaf is after the one thing that remained after the fire…our fortune. He's after a friend of mine too who has begun to feel like a sister to me. But I don't even care about the money. I just want my life back. I don't want to have to worry everyday that Count Olaf is going to kidnap my siblings, my friend, and I or kill us mercilessly. Last time his associate even hypnotized my brother Klaus." Violet shuddered. "And he's here. I don't know if you noticed, but Alfonso's wearing a wig."

"I knew something was up with that guy," Melissa said.

Violet was silent.

"Life sucks," Melissa stated simply after a moment.

'What an understatement,' Violet thought. But then again her life really did suck. It felt strange how something so horrible could be summed up into two small words. The simplicity of it made the corners of her mouth turn up a little. If only life were that simple. But ever since the fire, Violet had known that nothing in her life would ever be simple again.

"Life sucks," Violet agreed and the girls shared a small grin.

* * *

I hope you liked it!

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	9. Alfonso's Plan

Here's a new chapter!

ENJOY! :)

* * *

**Chapter Nine: The Plan**

I was late to math again this morning. I couldn't see straight because I had been awake all night long. I had tried to get a good sleep but I'd been up worrying about what I was going to do. Yet, after a full night of no sleep, I came up with nothing. How did Alfonso expect me to come up with the perfect excuse to leave this school? I didn't have many complaints. Even if I did, that didn't mean I wanted to leave.

I was late to class because I had been trying to use cover up on the dark circles under my eyes. Christina lent me one of her outfits to wear today too. At least I had something to calm my anxiousness.

"How did you sleep?" Klaus asked when I sat down.

I shrugged. "Okay. How about you?"

Klaus shrugged. "I slept but not well. I'm still worried about Alfonso. He hasn't hurt you, has he?"

I shook my head. "No," I answered, "I'm fine."

"You know that you can tell me if something is wrong, right?" Klaus said, "I'll help you."

"I know," I said, giving him a wry smile. "But I'm okay, I promise."

Klaus still kept an eye on me for the rest of class. I wished that he wouldn't. I knew it was only because he cared but it made it that much harder not to tell him the truth. I wished so much that I could tell him. Something, anything but I couldn't. Olaf made me promise not to and despite that, I knew if I told Klaus…he'd never let me do what I had to do.

* * *

At lunch I sat with Christina and Kate like I did on Monday. Klaus sat at another table with a few other boys who he had made friends with.

"How did you like rehearsal last night?" I asked them.

"It was okay," Kate said, chewing absentmindedly on her cucumber salad, "we didn't really do that much."

Christina didn't get to say anything because she was interrupted.

"Rehearsal was awesome last night," Connor Samuels said as he slid into the seat beside me. "What did you think, Janie?"

I shrugged. "Like Kate said, we didn't do much," I replied, "but it'll get better."

"I read through the script last night and apparently the two Queens get in a fight towards the end," Connor said, glancing eagerly from Christina to me. I gave him an encouraging smile. Christina just rolled her eyes at him.

"The Lion and the Unicorn get in a wrestling match," Will Davison said as he sat down beside Kate. He winked at her.

"Great," Christina said, though it didn't sound like she thought it was all that great.

Connor shrugged.

"I'm going to get a cookie," I said, needing an excuse to leave the table. Christina was being very moody lately and it was best to avoid her during those times.

I got up and headed to the lunch line. I was getting a drink from the soda fountain when someone tapped me on the shoulder.

I turned around and saw Connor holding a cookie out for me.

I smiled at his adorableness. "Thanks," I said, blushing as I took the cookie.

"You aren't actually up here for a cookie are you?" He said, giving me a knowing smile.

"You caught me," I responded, jokingly, "I just had to get away from there."

"Yeah, I understand," Connor said, "Christina can get really pissed off sometimes over nothing."

I didn't say anything so Connor went on.

"So are you going to the dance on Saturday?" he asked, nonchalantly.

"I think so," I said, "don't laugh but I've never actually been to a dance before."

His eyes widened. "Seriously?"

I blushed. "Yeah."

"You should definitely go then," Connor said, "My older brother, Jake is the DJ. Except everyone here calls him DJ Curly."

I giggled. "That's funny," I said, "I didn't know you had a brother."

"Yeah," Connor said and then changed the subject, "So you're friends with Klaus, right?"

"Yes," I replied, "we're just friends, though."

"Well, that's cool," Connor said. "So I was wondering if you wanted to-"

"Hello, Jane."

I jumped. Alfonso stood behind me carrying a tray of food.

"H-hi," I said, quietly.

"And you're Connor, correct?" Alfonso looked at Connor as if he were a little bug that he wanted to squish.

Connor nodded, casually sticking his hands in his pockets. "Yeah," he replied.

"Well, then I hope both of you are prepared for tonight's rehearsal," Alfonso said, looking at me meaningfully as he spoke.

"We are," Connor said, speaking for me.

"Great," Alfonso said, "Jane, I'd like to see you later tonight in my office."

"Why?" Connor asked.

"For costume fittings," Alfonso said, "like we talked about yesterday. Right, Jane?"

"R-right," I said, nervously.

"Well, I have to go," Alfonso said, "bye."

He left through the cafeteria doors.

"Well, that was weird," Connor said.

I didn't respond, instead, I just leaned against the counter and sighed heavily.

"What's wrong?" Connor asked, noticing my miserable expression.

"N-nothing," I said, "I'm just exhausted."

"So am I," Connor said, "I hate Tuesdays."

I couldn't agree more.

* * *

Gym only added to my misery. Kate and Christina weren't waiting for me at the usual spot. Instead, I found them already at the gym. They waved to me and we headed for the locker rooms. I walked ahead of Christina and as I walked through the doors I felt someone touch my back and I was sent forward. I fell onto my hands and knees. I got up off the floor and saw Kate and Christina changing into their gym clothes. No one else had been behind us.

"Why did you push me?" I asked, a little nervously.

Kate's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "We didn't push you."

"Then who did?" I asked. The locker room was nearly empty now.

Christina looked at Kate and they both shrugged.

"You probably just tripped over your shoelace," Christina said. Her and Kate started for the door. I glanced down at my shoes. My shoelaces were tied.

"But..." I started but Kate and Christina were already walking out the door.

I turned around and started to change. The locker room was empty now except for a girl with familiar red hair. Claire didn't look at me once as she left too. The only clear sign that she acknowledged me was how she slammed the door hard behind her. A lump had formed in my throat and I bit down hard on my lip. I was so confused. Did one of them push me? Did I really just trip over nothing? I knew I wasn't that uncoordinated.

I sighed and headed back into the gym.

In gym we were instructed to practice our serves with a partner. Christina and Kate paired up. Claire partnered with Nicole and even if Claire or Nicole didn't have partners, I was the last person they would've wanted to be paired with. Klaus had to miss gym for his American Literature class so he wasn't here either. The gym teacher paired me up with Mathew Deem who could barely hit or catch the ball and I swore I saw him pick his nose.

Jazz wasn't so different. After I'd done my leaps and moved toward the end of the line again, I tripped over what felt like someone's jazz shoe. I caught myself this time.

"Whoa, Janie," Christina said, jumping back. "I'm sorry."

I straightened up and saw Christina looking at me apologetically.

"No worries," I said, giving her a reassuring smile, "it was clearly an accident."

It was so strange. I wanted to believe that what happened was accidental but something deep inside me told me that for some reason Christina and Kate were angry with me. I couldn't think of anything I'd done to upset either of them. I mean, I got to be the Red Queen, but if that's why they were upset…it was a little unreasonable for them to be that mean about it.

* * *

Later that evening, I was in the common room doing homework with Klaus. well, we didn't have a lot of homework today so I was finally able to give Klaus another lesson in guitar. He had been practicing without me and he had gotten a lot better. I was a little happy that I could give something to Klaus so that when I was gone he wouldn't forget about me completely.

I got distracted and lost track of time. I realized I was going to be late.

"I have to go," I told Klaus.

My abruptness startled him. "Why?"

"I just realized that I have to be somewhere," I explained as I put the guitar I had been using away.

"Where are you going?" Klaus asked, curiously.

"I…um…I have to go to review for math," I said, quickly, "…extra help."

Klaus nodded in understanding. "You don't want to be late," he said.

"Yes," I agreed, "Mr. LaFont won't be too happy if I am."

I didn't give Klaus time to respond because I rushed to the door. A rush of chilly air swept past me as I exited the dorm and hurried down the steps as easily as I could without slipping on the ice. It was already dark out as it was December. That was one of my least favorite parts about the season.

I hurried across the campus, cold air biting my cheeks and nose making them rosy red. I reached the building where the auditorium was. I walked down the empty hallway and found his office.

I hesitated. I was sort of scared to open the door. After sneaking into Shirley's office and Stephano's room, I tried to avoid any space belonging to Count Olaf. That would be hard to do since I was probably going to be living in his home. I shuddered at the thought. If his office and guest bedrooms were that horrible, I couldn't imagine how awful his actual home would be. Klaus had told me a little bit about his house like how he had a tall tower which he dangled Sunny over in a birdcage. He also told me that Olaf decorated nearly every inch of his home with eyes.

I shook away my thoughts and hesitantly slid inside.

Alfonso's office wasn't a surprise. It was more put together than his room at Uncle Monty's and Shirley's office but it wasn't by much. A shelf lined one side of the room, filled with books on Acting and Theater. They were clearly school copies since Alfonso wouldn't be caught dead with a book.

A desk was placed opposite. It was turned to the side and slightly angled toward the door. The walls and floor were dull shades of gray and blue and pens and paper were scattered all over the desk and on the floor. Some looked like they had been written on with his scrawly writing and others looked like they were there because Alfonso liked to waste paper.

A few empty wine bottles had been stuffed under the desk as if Alfonso thought no one would see them there.

The room was dimly lit too and there were only two lamps that supplied any light source. I couldn't tell whether there were lights on the ceiling or not.

Alfonso was sitting in his desk chair with his legs resting on the desk. He was reading through what looked like some sort of journal. It looked old and worn, the pages ripped and dirty. It also had a familiar eye on the top corner. I assumed it was his.

Alfonso didn't notice me enter at first. I coughed and his head snapped up. He obviously hadn't expected me to be standing there because for a moment something flashed in his icy blue eyes. It was too dark for me to completely register that sudden wave of emotion before he switched back to his usual façade. He stood up and quickly stuck the journal inside the top drawer of his desk.

"Hello, Jane," Alfonso said, "come in and close the door behind you."

I was reluctant to, but I did as he asked and closed the door before I moved farther into the room.

"You're late," he said, frowning.

"I…um got distracted," I said, quickly.

Alfonso's eyes narrowed for a moment before he replaced it with his usual arrogant demeanor.

"Now," Alfonso said, "did you come up with a good excuse for why you want to be adopted by me?"

"Um…" I started, "sort of but not really. Actually, I spent most of my time thinking of a good excuse for why I had to leave Klaus to practice playing the guitar on his own."

"Oh, how dreadful," Alfonso said, mockingly, "but I guess I could say I'm not surprised. Why you're just a child, not nearly as ingenious as me."

"I'm smart," I said, "I just can't find a good reason for why I want to leave this place. I don't have much to complain about…well, except that you're here but I can't use that."

Alfonso pretended I hadn't spoken. "We're going to go to Principal Lance's office and we'll discuss this further once we get to the Administrative Building."

Alfonso strode past me and opened the door. I had to squint to let my eyes adjust to the brightly lit hallway. I followed Alfonso outside. It was still very cold out and I crossed my arms to keep warm. Snow drifted lazily from the sky and landed in my hair.

Sometimes, when I was younger, I wished that I could be a snowflake. Then I could drift from the sky and fly all over the place and no one would ever be able to catch me. Tonight, I had a similar desire except this time, I wished I could escape this villain and go somewhere far away where he couldn't find me.

We crossed the bridge; I trailed slowly behind, staring down at the ravine. I kept thinking of Klaus. It nearly killed me that I couldn't tell him what was going on. He kept a close eye on me today, obviously worried why I haven't been myself. Of course, there was a small ache in my heart too. I just wished that by some miracle, I would be saved from this nightmare.

Alfonso opened the front doors of the Administrative Building and slid inside. I tagged along and Alfonso pushed the button on the elevators. I stared at the glowing button hard as if by looking at it hard, I could make myself wake up from this bad dream. Then the doors slid open and my hopes fell once more.

I walked slowly behind the villain, into the elevator. I could feel myself shaking as the doors closed.

"Now," Alfonso said, "all you have to do is tell Mr. Lance that you want to leave the school."

"And that will convince him?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.

Alfonso patted my head. "That's why I'm glad to be your acting teacher," he said, "You will need to act like you want to leave. I hope you've thought of something to say."

"I'll improvise," I muttered, "but how do you expect Mr. Lance to just give me over to you just because I want to leave the school? Mr. Poe will probably just find me a new relative to live with…I'm not even sure if I have any relatives."

"That's where I come in and why I'm glad you have no other relatives," Alfonso said, "after a few minutes, I'll come in and overhear your conversation. Then I'll talk about my love for little children and how I'd love to have one. That should work."

The doors to the elevators opened to the second floor. Alfonso stepped out and I followed him into the hall outside the main office.

"Go in first so I don't seem suspicious," Alfonso said, giving me a small push towards the door.

I took a deep breath, gathering up my strength and courage so I could do this without showing how afraid I was. My hand turned the silver doorknob and I stepped inside the main office. I stared miserably at the ground as I approached the secretary's desk.

"Can I help you?" Mrs. Collins asked.

"Is Principal Lance available?" I asked, in my sweetest voice.

"Yes, I'll tell him you're here," she said. She left for minute and sent me to Room 5 when she returned.

"What's wrong?" Mr. Lance asked, "If this is about Count Olaf, I already told you, Alfonso is not Count Olaf."

"It's not about that at all," I said, "actually, I agree with you completely. I guess I've been so scared of Count Olaf coming that I jumped to conclusions about Mr. Alfonso. I came here because…I…I want to leave."

Mr. Lance glanced up at me oddly. "Why do you want to leave?" he asked.

"Well…" I started, "I lived in a boarding school in Canada for most of my life as I'm sure Mr. Poe mentioned. And things didn't really end well there as I'm sure Mr. Poe also may have mentioned."

"Mr. Poe never told me why you left," Mr. Lance said, "does it have anything to do with the reason why you want to leave this school?"

"The reason why I left isn't really important," I said, quickly, "but it does have something to do with it. It's not just this particular boarding school that I want to depart from. I think I just need a change."

Mr. Lance frowned. "I see," he said slowly, "but just because you didn't like your last boarding school, doesn't mean that you won't like it here. Are you doing well in your classes?"

"Well…yes," I said, honestly.

"Have you made any friends?" he asked.

I nodded slightly.

"Then, I don't see what the trouble is," Mr. Lance said, "you seem to be perfectly fine here."

"But-"

"But nothing," Mr. Lance said, "there is nothing to discuss here. Now if you don't mind, I'm very busy and you need to go back to your dorm."

I tried not to roll my eyes. Couldn't he just listen for once?

"I want to leave," I said, firmly, "I want to talk to Mr. Poe and tell him to find me a new guardian. I hate boarding school."

"Mr. Poe," Mr. Lance said, "is very busy right now as am I. Boarding school is always hard at first but in time I'm sure you'll make more friends and love it here. Now I need to get back to work."

There was a knock on the door and Mr. Lance got up to open it.

"Alfonso, what a surprise!" he said, cheerily, as Alfonso walked into the room.

"And look," Alfonso said, in fake endearment, "it's my favorite student. What is Jane doing here?"

"Jane," Mr. Lance said, "was just about to leave. She's been disrupting my work talking about wanting to leave the school so I told her to give our school another chance."

Alfonso scowled at me when Mr. Lance glanced down at his desk. It wasn't my fault Mr. Lance was so unhelpful.

"What's been troubling her?" Alfonso asked.

"I don't know," Mr. Lance said, sounding bored.

"I told you that I hate boarding school," I said, growing impatient, "I spent all of my life in one and I can't stand them. Something really bad happened last time and I'm scared it's going to happen again if I stay. I just want something different."

Mr. Lance frowned. "Well that's no reason to just leave the school," Mr. Lance said, "this school can't be as bad as that last one."

"The reason I came," Alfonso started, "is to inform you that I'm going to be leaving soon. I have recently been invited to join the cast of an original play that will be travelling the globe. I'm afraid, I won't be able to teach after the Christmas break."

"That sounds cool," I said, pretending to be excited.

Mr. Lance's frown deepened. "Well," he said, "if you're leaving, I need to find a replacement. If you don't mind stepping out so I can work."

"Can he be my guardian?" I asked.

"I wouldn't mind," Alfonso pressed, "I love children and Jane is my favorite student." He patted me on the head.

"Hmm…" Mr. Lance said, "I'll think about it, now, please, I'm very busy."

I sighed and walked out of his office and into the waiting room. Alfonso came out after me. He glowered at me and I tried not to meet his gaze.

I swiftly headed out into the hall and pressed the down button on the elevator.

"What happened in there?" Alfonso said, in a low voice, "Why didn't it work?"

The doors to the elevator opened and we stepped inside.

"I don't know," I said, "I tried everything."

"Well, clearly you didn't try hard enough," Alfonso growled.

"It's not my fault Mr. Lance is so unhelpful and all he does is talk about how busy he is," I muttered, "he didn't even listen to you and you're his favorite teacher."

"Looks like the deal is off then," Alfonso said, crossing his arms, "you failed to do what I asked. Maybe the bookworm will be better at this."

"No," I cried, "don't! We can try again sometime soon."

"When?" Alfonso asked, acidly.

"I…don't know," I said, "Tomorrow are Company auditions, Thursday is not enough time to plan, Friday is my dance show, and Saturday is the fifth grade winter dance."

"Ah, yes of course," Alfonso said, dramatically, "the winter dance is very important."

"It'll be my first," I said.

He raised his eyebrows and smirked. "Really?"

"Well, I'm only ten and my old school…well, I didn't really get out much," I said, "the only dances I've been to were performances but not very good. There was this girl who was an awful tap dancer and she-"

"I don't care about those dances," Alfonso said, "but I will tell you that you have until Sunday before I decide to use Klaus."

"That's not going to happen," I said, firmly.

"Are you going with that bookworm to the dance?" Alfonso asked, smirking.

"Uh…I don't know," I said, "Klaus hasn't asked me. I can't just assume that he likes me. We're just friends. But he probably doesn't like me back. He'll probably find some other girl who reads as much as he does. Besides, if Klaus wanted to go with me he would have asked me…"

Alfonso shrugged. "Well you'd better figure out when you'll try again," he said, "because if you don't, one of the Baudelaire's will and I won't stop trying to get their fortune and yours." His eyes shone brightly as he stared down at me.

The doors opened and Alfonso walked out. I followed.

"That won't be a problem," I said. I had to protect the Baudelaire's and so I knew I would have to come up with a good reason to leave this place.

"Good," Alfonso said, as we walked outside.

It was still cold and dark as we walked across the bridge. A crescent moon loomed overhead, casting an eerie glow on the forest on either side of the bridge. Alfonso glanced at me.

"Did something bad actually happen at your last school?" he asked, curiously.

I shuddered as I recalled the memory. All that smoke…the suffocating, black smoke…the flames…those hot flames…hungrily licking my waste...The scar from the burn I'd received on my waist pricked.

"Yes," I said, honestly, "it's why I was kicked out in the first place."

"What did you do?" Alfonso asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"Nothing," I said, shaking my head to clear the memory, "But I don't like to talk about what happened so don't ask."

We kept walking; a silence had fallen over the campus. Alfonso kept staring at me though. It seemed to bother him that I wouldn't tell him.

Alfonso shook his head then as if trying to clear away thoughts. "See me in my office when you're ready to do what I asked."

He strode away towards the teacher dorms.

I headed off to my own dorm. Klaus was sitting in one of the beanbags reading a book when I entered.

"Hey," I said, coming over to sit next to him.

"Are you feeling better about math?" Klaus asked.

I nodded. "Yes," I said, "but I might need some help again if I start having trouble. I think I'm going to go to my room. I'm really tired."

"Wait," Klaus said, "do you think you could stay up a little longer?"

"Why?" I asked.

Klaus gestured to the book. "I'm studying Edgar Allen Poe in my American Literature class," he explained, "we watched a movie about him which is why I missed gym today. The video was very interesting and we were also assigned a piece of his work to read tonight. I chose the 'Tell Tale Heart', do you know this story?"

"I've heard of the name," I said, "what's it about?"

"Well, I've read it before," Klaus said, "but I thought maybe you'd like to listen too. I think you'll like the story."

"Sure," I said. I couldn't find a reason not to.

I rested my head on his shoulder and Klaus began to read the piece. It felt nice to listen to him read. My parents had never been around to read me stories before bed and well, although Klaus couldn't exactly replace my parents, it was still comforting to hear all of these stories.

"You never said anything about it being a scary story," I said, when he finished.

"It was a surprise," Klaus said, "don't you like surprises?"

I grinned. "I think I don't mind them that much."

"Good," Klaus said and we shared a small smile.

Suddenly, his smile lessened.

"Jane?" he asked, carefully.

"Yes?"

"I, um…" he trailed off.

"What?" I asked, sensing his hesitation, "You can tell me." The common room was completely empty by now.

Klaus looked away from me. "Are you going to that winter dance on Friday?" he asked.

"I think so," I said, "my friends are going and it sounds like fun, so probably. Are you?"

"Should I come?" Klaus asked, "I don't usually go to dances not that we had many of them last year."

"Of course," I said, excitedly. "I've never been to one either. I'd love it if you came, that way I won't be alone in this whole 'newbie' thing."

Klaus raised an eyebrow. "Newbie?" he said, skeptically, "Is that a word Jane?"

"Why don't you tell me?" I asked, jokingly, "You're the dictionary here."

"Well, according to the dictionary 'newbie' is not a word," Klaus said, a small grin threatened to spread across his face.

"Well, then, I'm making it one," I said, firmly.

We shared another brief smile.

"It's late," I said, finally, "we should go to bed."

I rose from my beanbag and waited for Klaus to get up.

As I looked at him, my breath was taken away. His brown eyes reminded me of the warm earth and his matching brown hair fell down to his ears. In that instant, it occurred to me just how afraid and upset I was to leave Klaus. I couldn't care less whether I stayed at this boarding school or not. That didn't matter to me. What mattered to me was that I would be leaving my best friend behind.

Taking Klaus off guard, I stepped forward and enveloped Klaus into a tight hug.

"Goodnight," I said, when I let go.

"Goodnight," Klaus said, a little breathlessly.

It took us a moment before we gave up and left for our rooms.

As I ascended the stairs, my thoughts lingered on the story Klaus read to me and suddenly my mind was brought back to reality. Alfonso's offer kept coming back into my thoughts and as I walked up the stairs, I suddenly felt like the murderer in the story. Each step I took echoed in my ear, sharp and clear as a bell, and resembling my guilt for not being honest with Klaus.

I got ready for bed and tried to get some sleep but couldn't when all I could do was stare at the moon glowing eerily through the window.

* * *

_**Klaus Baudelaire**_

I climbed up the boy's stairwell to my dorm. My thoughts were on Jane. It made me smile whenever I thought about her. But I was also worried. Jane wasn't acting like herself and I wasn't sure why. I just wished that she would tell me what was wrong. Did she find out that I liked her and she doesn't feel the same way?

That could be the reason. Jane was so pretty that she probably only thought of me as her friend. She probably liked Connor, though I didn't like him for Jane.

I liked Jane because she was smart, brave, and she had a good heart. I admired how she had taught herself to play an instrument like the piano. I knew from learning the guitar, that it wasn't easy. There were many other reasons why I liked her too. She was also cheerful at times. However, ever since Alfonso came, Jane hasn't been all too happy. It made me upset. I hated seeing that forced smile she had taken to wearing in order to hide her true pain. Her façade didn't fool me, though. I couldn't read minds or anything like that, but I once came across a book on psychology in my parent's enormous library. Besides, I've known Jane for a few months now and any one who knew her as well as I did could see that she was hurting. Something was troubling her even more now and I craved to know why. I wanted to put an end to whatever erased her pretty smile from her sweet face.

Maybe she was having problems with her new friends. Christina and Kate had been nice enough to make Jane feel welcome…but Violet was right not to trust them. I really hoped they hadn't hurt Jane in some way.

Alfonso also may have hurt Jane in some way. That thought scared me more than anything and something in my gut told me it was true. But if something had happened, Jane would have told me, right? Why would she keep something that could be horrible secret?

I reached my room and got ready for bed. Connor was on his laptop again, in fact, he usually stayed up until one o'clock in the morning talking to some friend. It was very irritating but Connor didn't seem to care.

As I climbed into bed Connor glanced over at me.

"Did you talk to Jane today?" he asked.

"Yes," I answered, furrowing my eyebrows.

"Did she talk about me at all?" Connor pressed.

"No," I replied, "she didn't really talk that much about anyone."

"Well, I asked her to the dance today," Connor said, "Well…I tried to. That weird acting teacher interrupted me and I'm not sure if Jane understood what I was trying to ask her."

I remembered seeing Jane talking to Connor today at lunch. It had been hard not to notice them and ever since, I've hated Connor. I was mostly jealous because he was talking to Jane and Connor had more courage than I did since he nearly asked her to the dance. Why couldn't he go after some other girl in this school? Why did he have to like Jane?

"Oh," I said.

"Should I ask her again?" Connor asked.

I shrugged. "If you want."

"Do you think you could talk to her a little bit for me?" Connor asked, "You know, since you're friends. Maybe you could put in a good word for me."

"Maybe," I said, though I highly doubted it.

Connor sighed. "Jane will definitely say yes," he said, "I was talking to her today and she sounded like she liked me."

I just nodded and tried not to scowl at the ground. I only wished that I were that confident about how Jane felt about me.

"Well, goodnight," Connor said.

I muttered a goodnight and tried to go to sleep. My mind had wandered back to Jane's odd behavior and I couldn't do much but stare at the crescent moon.

* * *

Review!


	10. Friends or Foes?

Here's a new chapter! This chapter is just a few snipets of things that happened before the winter dance. The winter dance is probably next chapter or something and it gets intense lol!

**Thanks to everyone who's been reveiwing my story!**

I'm on vacation all next week but i'm bringing my laptop so i'll try and update if i have time. :)

Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter Ten: Friends...or Foes?**

I hurried to the audition with Klaus following. Kate told me that we were signed up for five o'clock in the evening and it was only 4:45pm. Klaus' audition was at 4:50pm.

We got to the studio just as they were calling Klaus into audition.

"Good luck," I said, as he went inside.

I convinced Klaus to sing Desperado by the Eagles again because I just loved that song with his voice and it wasn't a song that was used too much for shows, as it was an older song.

I sat on the bench outside. Kate and Christina weren't there which was odd. I was the only person there and I guessed that there weren't any other people coming anytime soon. Even when Klaus came out they failed to show. 'What was keeping them?' I wondered.

I walked into the studio. Alfonso gave me another one of his creepy smiles that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up, when he saw me. Then he looked down at the clipboard he was holding. He gave me a strange look.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, looking confused.

I furrowed my eyebrows. "I'm auditioning for the Company show," I explained, "except my friends aren't here yet."

Alfonso's eyes widened. "Your friends were here," he explained, half-smirking. "They said you decided not to do it and then they performed that song for us."

I gapped, my face paling.

"B-but they told me to come at five o'clock," I protested, as if that would make everything better, "how could they have done it without me? It was a three-part harmony."

Alfonso shrugged. "They made it a two-part harmony I guess," he said, "well are you auditioning or not because I am a very busy man."

"I…I…" I bit my lip and pinched myself so I wouldn't cry. Why would they think I didn't want to be in the Company show? Maybe they told me the wrong time by accident. Could they really have done this on purpose? I was so confused and I needed to talk to someone. I glanced at the door. I needed to talk to Klaus. He would know what to do. "Can I have a second?" I asked.

Alfonso narrowed his eyes but nodded. "Make it quick, orphan," he said.

I hurried out the door and found Klaus sitting on the bench. He got up and gave me an odd look.

"Where are Kate and Christina?" he asked.

At that second, I couldn't take it anymore, and tears flooded down my cheeks.

"Jane?" Klaus said, softly, stepping toward me. "Are you okay? What's wrong?"

"T-they…um…" I could barely speak through my tears, "They already came."

Klaus looked confused. "What do you mean?"

"T-they auditioned w-without m-me. K-kate lied."

Understanding washed over Klaus and he gaped like I had.

"Oh no, Jane," he said, concerned, taking another step toward me. He wrapped his arms around my shoulders and I cried softly.

"I-I don't know why," I whispered, "I never..."

"I know," Klaus said, rubbing my back gently, "I'm sorry, Jane."

"It's not your fault," I said.

Someone coughed suddenly.

We broke apart and looked to see Alfonso staring at us. He looked like he was growing impatient with us.

"So, orphan," he said, "what's it going to be?"

I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand. "I-I don't think I'm going to audition," I said. I took Klaus' wrist and began towing him away.

"Wait," Klaus said, stopping so I would too. Alfonso was starting to leave. "Don't go," he said.

Alfonso turned back and gave Klaus an odd look.

"What do you want, boy?" Alfonso said, narrowing his eyes.

"Just wait for a few more seconds," Klaus said, before turning to me, "This isn't over, Jane."

"What else can I do?" I said, glancing towards Alfonso who was still watching us.

"Sing something else," Klaus suggested.

I shook my head. "I can't," I said, hopelessly.

"Of course you can," Klaus insisted, "you must have something you can sing. What about the song that you sang for me that first day at Company?"

I shook my head. "I can't do that," I said, grimacing, "I barely practiced it. I rehearsed 'Home Sweet Home' like a million times before this. I know all the parts off by heart."

Klaus gave me a small smile and winked. I gapped, understanding. "I could sing that song," I said, my heart rose, "oh, thank you Klaus."

I hugged him tightly then I faced Alfonso.

"I can do that right?" I asked, "I can sing that song."

Alfonso nodded. "Yes," he said, a little irritated, "those girls didn't even sing that song."

I felt a small pang in my chest as he said that. It made me realize, that the entire time, they had probably been rehearsing a different song without me. I shook it off, though and followed Alfonso into the room to audition.

* * *

The next day was awful. When I arrived to math class Christina and Kate didn't wave to me or say hi at all. They just ignored me. So after class I went to confront them.

"Hey," I said, tapping Christina on the shoulder.

She turned and smiled. "Oh hey Janie," she said, cheerfully as if nothing was wrong. Then she frowned. "Where were you yesterday?"

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"We went to the audition but you weren't there," Kate said, "why didn't you come?"

"I did come," I said, "you told me it was at five o'clock."

They exchanged confused looks. "Are you sure?" Christina asked giving me a funny look.

"I'm pretty sure I told you it was at four o'clock," Kate pointed out.

"Yes, I'm sure," I said, "I wrote it down." I took out one of my notebooks and flipped to the inside cover. In pencil, I had written down five o'clock.

"Look, Janie," Christina said, "we have to get to class or we're going to be late."

They left without even saying goodbye.

I stuffed my book back into my bag and trudged along the pathway to catch up with Klaus.

"What did they say?" Klaus asked.

"They said they told me four o'clock," I said, "but I swear it was five. I even wrote it down."

"What did they say when you showed them?" Klaus asked again.

"Nothing," I said, "actually they didn't even look at it. They just said they were going to be late for class and then left."

Klaus frowned. "Maybe you shouldn't bother with them anymore," he said, "they clearly aren't very nice girls. You have plenty of other friends."

"Where have you been, Klaus?" I said, grimacing, "My other friends hate me."

Klaus frowned. "They can't hate you," he said, "I'm sure if you told them about everything and said you were sorry, they would forgive you."

"Maybe," I replied, "but I highly doubt it."

"Well, despite that," Klaus said, "I'm your friend, Jane."

I gave him a small smile. "I know," I said, "so if I ever do anything in the future to hurt you or make you hate me like I did with my other friends well…I'm just apologizing in advance. It would be just like me to lose friends like you and your siblings for stupid reasons."

"I don't think I could ever hate you, Jane," Klaus said, making me blush, "no matter how many silly reasons you can come up with."

"Good," I said, and we shared a small smile.

* * *

At lunch Klaus and I sat alone at a small table near the back. I didn't really mind it so much. Klaus talked about all the things he had learned in his American Literature class and like always I loved learning about everything and everyone he researched.

"I feel like I've been talking way too much," Klaus said, after he finished telling me about the life of Edgar Allen Poe and how the cause of his sudden death was a mystery. "Have you read any good books lately?"

"Does Pretty Little Liars count?" I asked, cocking an eyebrow.

Klaus chuckled. "Sure," he said and I started to tell him all about the books. I'd only just finished the first book so I wasn't too far into the series to know a whole lot. But we laughed a lot. That made my day just a little easier.

"Janie?"

We stopped talking and turned to see Connor.

"Oh, hey," I said.

"What are you doing over here?" Connor asked, his eyes drifting to Klaus.

I glanced briefly at Klaus too, who was looking away. I couldn't read his expression.

"I was about to ask the same question," I said, "but to answer yours, well, Klaus and I just decided to sit somewhere else today."

"Oh, okay," Connor said, "do you want to go get a cookie with me again?" He winked.

"Um…" I glanced at Klaus who was still looking away, "okay…only for a moment though."

I walked over to the lunch line with Connor. I grabbed two cookies.

"Thanks," Connor said, taking the second one from me. I opened my mouth to tell him that the cookie was for Klaus when he kept talking. "Do you remember when we talked on Tuesday?"

I nodded. "You were about to ask me something when…Mr. Alfonso interrupted."

"Yeah," Connor said, "so I was going to ask you…uh…well…I know it's a little late but…the dance on Saturday…well…do you want to…"

"Go together," I finished for him.

Connor nodded. "Yes," he said, "so what do you think?"

I furrowed my eyebrows. I hated letting him down like this but I just wasn't in the mood to go to the dance anymore. Klaus and I were going to hang out in the common room with Violet and Sunny. I felt the best way to say no was just to be honest.

"I'm sorry," I said, "I would but…I'm not going to go to the dance anymore."

Connor frowned, obviously hurt from being rejected. "Oh…I'm sorry I-"

"No," I said, "don't apologize. I really would have said yes but…well Christina, Kate, and I haven't really been getting along lately. It's really put a damper on my mood and I just don't feel like going to a dance. It has nothing to do with you at all."

Connor looked a little relieved. "Well, I guess that makes me feel a little better," he said.

* * *

_**Klaus Baudelaire**_

I saw Connor approaching the table and tried not to scowl. I knew what he was up to because he had talked non-stop about it all last night and this morning.

"Janie?" he said.

Jane broke off midsentence and turned to see Connor.

"Oh, hey," she said.

"What are you doing over here?" Connor asked, eyeing me as if he didn't think I belonged at this table. I looked away towards the cafeteria doors so Jane wouldn't see my obvious hatred for Connor. I felt Jane turn her gaze on me and hoped she hadn't seen my expression.

"I was about to ask the same question," Jane said, "but to answer yours, well, Klaus and I just decided to sit somewhere else today."

"Oh, okay," Connor said, "do you want to go get a cookie with me again?" I looked briefly towards Connor in time to see him wink. I clenched my fists under the table.

"Um…" Jane trailed off. I looked away again and felt Jane's gaze on me again, "okay…only for a moment though."

They left for the lunch line. I guess I should have known Jane would agree to it. She didn't like to let people down like that. I wasn't mad at Jane. Only Connor and those rude girls who had hurt Jane. I didn't want her getting mixed into that crowd again. I was afraid that she would get hurt again and it would be my fault again because I hadn't done anything to prevent it.

I watched them as they talked at the lunch line. I couldn't make sense of what they were saying but I could tell when Connor finally got the courage to ask because he was tenser. I saw Jane as she thought about a response. I closed my eyes and hoped she would say no.

I knew I had been stalling for a bit but I was planning on asking Jane to the dance soon. I just wasn't sure how or when. I couldn't just blurt it out and I knew if I tried, I wouldn't be able to get any words out. When Jane told me that she didn't want to go to the dance anymore, I decided that I would tell her at the Company show. I told Jane that I was singing Desperado by the Eagles, and while I liked the song, I secretly chose something else. I chose one of Jane's favorite songs that would hopefully make her understand how I felt about her. The song I chose was one of Jane's favorites. Of course, I'd thought of other ways to tell her. I'd thought about all of the books I've read and how the man told the woman he loved how he felt. Some of them wrote love letters, others were subtler about it, and some like Romeo in '_Romeo and Juliet_' was bold enough that he walked up to her and confessed right away. But for them it was love at first sight and it was also a fictional play. As much as I hoped, reality was nothing like fiction and I had no idea whether Jane felt anything for me at all. What if I told her the truth and was let down? I was afraid of risking our friendship over it.

So I'd felt that using tactics from literature was not the best way to tell her. I came to the conclusion of telling her through song because I knew she loved music and apparently she thought I was quite good at singing too. The results for the auditions were posted and surprisingly, I made the show. I didn't expect Alfonso to pick me. Jane was picked too, but it didn't surprise me. She had a beautiful voice. It reminded me of how my mother used to love to go to see the Opera or other theatrical shows. She would have loved to meet Jane.

I frowned to myself and felt a twinge of sadness thinking about my mother. I missed my parents terribly. If they were alive, I knew my father would have been the first person I went to for advice. My next choice would be my mother. But I couldn't ask them for help anymore. I wondered how Jane did it. How did she go about never really knowing her parents? I don't know if I would be as brave about it. Jane was so tough sometimes that it surprised me. When she snuck into Shirley's office just to help me, I was frightened to learn that at first and I was still a little upset that Jane had put herself at risk like that but I was still thankful. It made me like her even more.

Jane sat back down then.

I'd been so immersed in my own thoughts that I had barely paid attention to what was going on. I shook my head to clear my thoughts.

"Hey," I said, "what happened?"

Jane shrugged. "He kind of just asked me to the dance," she said, nonchalantly.

"Really?" I said, trying to bite back my frustration.

"Yeah," she said, "but I told him no."

I gaped. "W-why?" I asked, my heart rose.

She shrugged again. "Well, I just don't feel like going to the dance anymore," I said, "like I told you."

I nodded. "I'm sure he was a little upset," I said.

Jane smiled. "Yes," she said, "a little bit but I just told him the truth. He felt better after that."

I nodded silently. I had to keep back my smile that would probably give away my relief that Jane hadn't said yes.

* * *

_**Jane Rumary**_

After rehearsal that evening, I headed for the dance studio where I had Jazz everyday. We were supposed to have a brush up rehearsal tonight since tomorrow was our dance show. I wished that time could speed up and I wouldn't have to see Christina and Kate again. They haven't spoken to me since this morning and I was in no mood to talk to them tonight.

"Why can't you come?" I muttered to Klaus as I reached the studio. Klaus had agreed to walk with me to the studio to make me feel a little better.

He chuckled. "I'd rather not dance around in a leotard."

"Oh, come on," I pressed, grinning, "you could be the next Billy Elliot."

"Let's be realistic, Jane," Klaus said, "I'll be in the common room."

"Okay," I sighed in defeat.

Klaus waved and walked back towards the common room. I turned and climbed up the stairs and into the building. I walked past the auditorium and the gym to Studio A. Christina and Kate were already there, stretching. I found a spot away from them and started to stretch too.

We began rehearsing. I could see Kate and Christina reflected in the mirror. Every time we finished running through the dance, they would glance at me every now and then, before snickering and whispering things to each other. I took a deep breath and told myself to relax. I tried to distract myself by thinking about Klaus. Soon I could go to the common room and just read with Klaus. That was one of the things I looked forward to doing.

I managed to last the rehearsal though it was more awful with every second that went by. I went to go change back into my regular clothes. As I walked towards the exit, I saw Alfonso standing outside of the auditorium doors.

"I hope to see you in my office soon, Jane," he said, in a low voice so only I could hear.

"H-hopefully," I said, miserably, "Is there any chance I could have an extension?"

"No," Alfonso said, firmly.

"I don't know what to do, though," I complained, "don't you have anything? I thought you loved to scheme."

Alfonso's eyes darkened and I took a step away from him. "I could do that," Alfonso said, irritated, "but what's the fun in that? And I already did my part. You just need to do yours and if I told you what to say…then it wouldn't be nearly as believable."

I sighed. "Well I have nothing so far," I muttered, "the last time I was forced to leave."

Alfonso's eyes shone brightly as he stared at me. "Then do whatever you did last time," he suggested.

I frowned. "No," I cried, appalled at what he was asking of me, "I would never do that. I never did that." I sighed. "I'll come up with something that doesn't involve me doing something bad."

Alfonso scowled. "Fine," he said, "but if you don't think of anything, you have a last resort."

I bit my lip and headed outside. As I walked down the stairs, I felt someone's hands on my back. I fell down the remaining steps, landing on my hands and knees at the bottom. Fortunately, I hadn't been too far from the ground.

I turned and saw Kate and Christina coming down the stairs with a few other girls. They were all laughing. I gawked at them, feeling humiliated.

"What the hell was that?" An angry voice yelled.

A girl with straight black hair stormed over to them. They exchanged glances as if they thought she was insane.

"Did you just push her?" she stepped closer to them.

"What are you talking about?" Kate asked, innocently, "We were just walking down the stairs and Janie tripped or something."

"You liar," the girl snarled, "You stay away from her, you hear me? Or I'll show you what it feels like to be pushed."

"What is going on out here?" Alfonso said as he came outside. He saw me still on the ground and narrowed his eyes at the girl with black hair.

"Those girls pushed Jane," the girl said, angrily.

"We didn't do anything," Christina said, "Melissa is lying to you. She pushed Janie, right?" Christina looked at me, her eyes hard.

"I…" I started. Everyone was staring at me. "I don't know who did it. actually, no one did. I just tripped, clumsy me."

"See," Kate said, "Janie just tripped."

Alfonso was still looking at Melissa and glared at her for a second before giving the others a phony smile. "Good," he said, "now off you go to your dorms."

Alfonso left and Kate, Christina, and their friends left, with peals of laughter. I frowned to myself and felt my vision blurring with tears.

"Are you okay?" Melissa asked, softly. She walked over and helped me up off of the ground.

"Y-yeah," I managed.

"You shouldn't have done that," Melissa said.

"I know," I said, quietly, "but I knew if I didn't, they would tease me about it."

Melissa grimaced. "Strangely, I understand," she said, smiling slightly, "I've had that happen to me before."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "Really?"

She nodded and picked up the bag I had been carrying. She handed it to me. "Yes," Melissa said, "not here, though. And when it happened to me, there wasn't anyone around to stop it."

"I'm sorry," I said.

Melissa gave me a small smile. "It's okay," she said, "it's not that important. Let's go back to the common room, I'll walk with you."

"Thanks," I said, wiping my eyes with my sleeve.

We started for the common room.

"Are you Violet's friend?" Melissa asked.

I nodded.

"I'm her roommate," Melissa said.

I just nodded. Violet kept trying to convince us that Melissa was nice now. I didn't really trust her that much at first but she seemed to be right. Violet was usually right about a lot of things. I looked up to her because of that.

We arrived back at the common room. Klaus was reading inside. Violet was sitting with him and Sunny too.

Violet was the first to see us.

"Oh, hey," she said, then she noticed my tear stained face, "what's wrong?"

Klaus and Sunny looked up. Klaus stood and looked concerned.

"Some girls pushed her down the stairs," Melissa said, "Lucky I had been going past the studios and saw it."

"Are you okay, Jane?" Violet asked.

I nodded.

"I'm sorry," Klaus said.

"No," I protested, "don't apologize. You didn't do anything."

"Dasa!" Sunny growled, barring her teeth. She probably meant, "I'll get them!"

"Thanks Sunny," I said, "but I don't think you should. I don't want them to have any reason to target you or your siblings."

"What happened after?" Klaus asked, "Did you tell someone?"

"That weird Alfonso guy saw us," Melissa explained, "Those girls nearly convinced him that I did it. Then Jane played it off as an accident."

Klaus' eyes widened at me.

"Don't give me that look," I muttered, "They would have done something worse to me if I had. Besides, Alfonso would have found a reason to blame Melissa. It's clear he doesn't like you."

Violet sighed. "I can see that Alfonso wouldn't be much help either," Violet agreed, "but you should talk to another teacher."

"No, no, no," I said, "I can't do that. They'll tease me. I've learned enough about mean girls to not tell on them, especially right in front of them."

"Think about it, Jane," Klaus said, "a teacher can put a stop to this before you really get hurt."

"I'll be fine," I said.

They didn't look happy with my decision but they didn't say another word.

* * *

The next day I stuck by Klaus for most of the day. It wasn't so bad. At the end of the day, after rehearsal, I hurried off to get ready for the Dance Show. It wasn't a big show. Just a two jazz dances, two ballet dances, and two tap dances. Melissa was working as crew for the show so I just sat near her until it was our turn to dance.

I was mostly relieved when it was over and I couldn't wait to just hang out with Klaus tonight and come up with an excuse for Mr. Lance.

"Good job," Violet said, after the show, "I didn't know you were a good dancer."

"Thanks," I said, "but I'm not that good. Acting is probably my forte."

"And singing," Klaus added, "our Jane wouldn't be the same without that voice."

I giggled.

"Refla?" Sunny shrieked which Klaus told me meant, "Why haven't you sung for us yet?"

"You'll see at the Company show," I said, smiling, "but now its time to watch reruns of Glee."

Klaus half girnned. "Does that mean we have to watch it too?" he asked.

I placed my hands on my hips and nodded. "Of course," I said, dramatically making Klaus chuckle.

Violet and Sunny were smiling too.

"Glee night with Jane," Violet said, "I can't wait."

"There'll be popcorn," I added, "and milkshakes."

"Fula!" Sunny shrieked which probably meant that she preferred caramel popcorn to buttered popcorn which wasn't provided in the popcorn machine.

"Well then, maybe you'll have to settle for another one of your enchiladas," I said.

Sunny flashed me a toothy grin.

We went back to the common room and did as planned. After an episode, Violet and Sunny decided to do something else. I was a little bummed at their attitude towards the show but I was just happy that I got to spend a fun time with them. It made me slightly sad knowing that soon…I wouldn't have that anymore. I tried to remain positive, though.

Klaus stayed with me except we did our usual activities. We were reading in the mini library part of the common room. I was busy reading Pretty Little Liars while Klaus read about American philosophy.

"Jane?" Klaus asked, suddenly.

I looked up at him.

"Yes?"

"Um…" Klaus started, "Are you still thinking about going to the dance?"

"Well, I don't know," I said, "I could still go but you're not going right, so I wouldn't really get to hang out with you. Unless…were you thinking of going?"

"I-I don't know…" Klaus said, his smile fading, "I was wondering if maybe you would…like to-"

"Hey, Janie."

It was Kate and Christina. I narrowed my eyes.

"What do you want?" I said, acidly.

Kate looked gave me a tiny frown. "We just wanted to tell you…"

"That we're sorry," Christina said, "for not being nice to you. It was wrong for us to do that to you."

I glanced at Klaus who was frowning at the girls.

"We really are sorry," Kate said, her eyes glazed with tears, "we didn't realize we made you feel bad."

"So," Christina said, "we want to make it up to you."

"How?" I asked.

"Are you still going to the dance?" Kate asked, grinning.

I shrugged. "I don't know. Connor asked me but I told him I wasn't going."

Christina smiled. "Oh my gosh, Janie!" she cried, "He asked you? Well then you really should come to our room tomorrow before the dance. We can help you get ready. Do you have anything to wear to it?"

I shook my head. "All of my clothes aren't very…nice," I said.

"Oh, right we almost forgot," Kate said, "Well I'm sure we'll find something. So you'll get ready with us tomorrow right?"

I shrugged. "I guess," I said.

"Yay!" Christina said, giving me a quick hug, "Do you want to come and hand out with us?"

I glanced at Klaus.

"Actually," I said, "I can't right now. Klaus and I wanted to do something but maybe later."

"Sure," Kate said, "bye Janie."

They walked into the other room.

"What is it that we were going to do?" Klaus asked, curiously.

"Don't you have another one of those stories that you're supposed to read?" I asked.

"Yes," Klaus said, putting down his book on philosophy and giving me a small smile, "How about 'The Man With No Eyes'?"

"Okay," I agreed. Klaus got the story. Before he started, he frowned at me.

"Are you really going to forgive them like that?" Klaus said, "Especially after what they did."

"Well…" I trailed off, "they did seem nice. I know I shouldn't really trust them but…what harm could getting ready for the dance do?"

Klaus was still frowning. "I'll be careful," I reassured him.

"Are you going with Connor?" Klaus asked.

"I think so," I said, shrugging, "why?"

Klaus shrugged. "I was just curious." he sighed, then, and began to read.

* * *

Review, review, review!


	11. Winter Dance

I've been waiting so long to upload this next chapter! It's the Winter Dance and like all school dances, there is bound to be some kind of drama! It's also nearly Sunday and Jane still hasn't thought of anything!

ENJOY!

* * *

**Chapter 11: Winter Dance**

That afternoon following rehearsal I headed back to the common room. It had been a special rehearsal this afternoon for the bigger parts so Klaus wasn't with me. As I entered the common room I found Violet, Klaus, and Sunny sitting together in the library section. They were talking about something but I couldn't hear because their voices were lowered.

They noticed me and their expressions were serious.

"What is it?" I asked, "is something wrong?"

"Jane," Violet said, carefully, "Klaus told me about Christina and Kate."

I glanced at Klaus. "Everything is fine, Klaus," I insisted, "they said they were sorry."

"Jane," Violet said, again, "we're not angry with you. We just care about you and I don't think it's a good idea for you to hang out with them so suddenly. They aren't nice girls. Even Melissa thinks so."

I crossed my arms. Christina and Kate had been nice to me all day the way they had last week. It seemed like they had put all of their reasons for not liking me aside. "I can't hold a grudge forever," I said, "and I already agreed to hang out with them. I can't just go back on it like that. They'll tease me for sure."

"Just please be careful," Klaus said, "We don't want you to get hurt."

"And I'm not going to," I said, getting up, "I can take care of myself. Besides, I'm not just going to be with Kate and Christina the entire time. Connor asked me to go with him to the dance and if I don't go, I'll just be letting him down. So don't worry I'll be fine. I have to go though. They wanted me to get ready for the dance with them."

"Fulipo!" Sunny shrieked. I didn't need Violet or Klaus to translate. I knew what she meant, "They aren't your friends. We are."

I nodded. "You are still my friends," I gave them a reassuring smile, "just because I'm hanging out with other people doesn't mean I don't like you anymore. Klaus can come to the dance if he'd like to."

I started for the stairs when someone touching my wrist gently stopped me in my tracks. I turned and my heart thumped when Klaus' face was close to mine. He blinked suddenly and straightened.

"Please stay," Klaus said, softly, "we can have fun here. I'll even watch Glee with you for as long as you want. Please, Jane."

I gave him a small smile. "I know you're worried Klaus," I said, "but I'll be okay, I promise. You know, I may not even stay for the whole dance. I'll come back early if you want."

"I don't want them to hurt you," Klaus said, "I have a bad feeling about this."

"I'll be okay," I said again, "and if you are really that worried, than you should come."

Klaus shook his head. "I'd like to but I think I'd feel like a third wheel next to you and Connor Samuels. Besides, I'd rather stay and read. Don't you?"

I bit my lip. "Yes," I admitted, "I wouldn't mind staying but…I've been hiding away like that for my entire life. I let people get away with taking away those kinds of opportunities that everyone else has because I was afraid. Before I came here, I never actually felt…normal. I'm usually the girl who no one likes. But finally…finally other people like me. _Me_," I emphasized, "I've always hidden because I was always afraid of getting hurt. I'm tired of doing that. Isn't taking risks what life is all about? So even if I mess up somehow, well, I'll just have to deal with it myself. I mean, last time I risked my life to save you, but it was all worth it in the end."

"Please just stay," Klaus said, softly.

"Give me one good reason other than getting hurt for why I shouldn't go," I said.

Klaus glanced away briefly. "Because…Jane I…I…"

"I have to go, Klaus," I said, quickly, "even if it means I'm taking another risk."

I gave him a hug and waved slightly as I left.

* * *

I knocked on Christina and Kate's door. The door opened and Kate smiled when she saw me. Today her hair was pulled up into a complicated hair do that looked very pretty and her face had makeup on it that brought out her dark eyes.

"Janie's here, Chrissy," she said to Christina. "Come in."

I entered the room and found Christina lying on her bed reading People magazine. Her hair was curled and makeup covered her face. The song "Raise Your Glass" by Pink blarred from her iTouch.

"Hey, Janie," Christina said, "You're just in time. We just finished doing our own hair and make up for the dance. We'll do your hair."

"Thanks," I said.

They got out hair supplies and spread it out on the floor behind where they had me sit. Christina began to straighten my hair.

"You have the best hair," she said, "I wish I had your hair."

"Maybe you two could trade for the dance," Kate joked.

I giggled and Kate began to play with my hair and put it in what felt like a complicated knot. There wasn't a mirror so I could see how it looked but it felt like it looked nice.

Christina began putting on my makeup with the Mac makeup her mom sent her.

When I was done I opened my eyes and saw them smiling. "Perfect," Kate said, "you're gorgeous."

"Connor will go crazy when he sees you," Christina said, giggling. Thinking about going with Connor made butterflies fill my stomach. I'd never been on a date or anything with a guy. What was I supposed to say? "We have an hour so we'll paint your nails and after you can put on the dress Kate said she would lend you." Christina continued as Kate grabbed a bottle of red nail polish. They painted my nails and I sat on the Christina's bed while they dried. Kate brought out a pretty black dress with white splatters. It was also strapless.

"It's strapless?" I said, a little timidly.

Kate smiled. "Well, of course," she said, "it'll look great on you. I'm going to put mine on in the bathroom."

"You can change here," Christina said, "I'm going over to the room next door anyways. Miranda is lending me one of her dresses."

I smiled. "Okay." Kate went into the bathroom and Christina left for the other room. I changed into the dress and beamed at how nice it looked. The dress flowed down to just above my knees and had a zipper in the front rather than the back. It looked odd but cool at the same time. It reminded me of a dress that would be worn in a music video by someone like Hayley Williams. I twirled around pretending I was Cinderella about to go to the Prince's Ball. Finally I was experiencing the one thing I'd never done before. The thought of Connor seeing me looking pretty made me feel giddy. I giggled at Uncle Monty's term for being excited. A lot had happened since Uncle Monty's. Bad and good things. Count Olaf disguising as Captain Sham and then Shirley. Alfonso's scheme to get me in his clutches. But I also became really good friends with Violet, Sunny, and Klaus…I sighed. I didn't mean to make Klaus feel bad, I just wanted to go to the dance with Kate and Christina.

"Are you done?" Kate called from the bathroom.

"Yes," I said, "you can come in."

She opened the bathroom door and stepped into the room. She wore a knee-length dress with a white top part and the bottom was black. A pink ribbon wrapped around her where the two colors met. She wore black shoes with a small heel.

"That looks really nice on you," I said, giving her a kind smile.

"Thanks," she said, adjusting her hair.

Christina returned from the room next door wearing a dark blue dress with small tan heels.

"You look nice too," I told her.

She smiled. "Not as nice as you look," she said, linking her arm through mine, "let's hurry! We're late."

Kate linked her arm in Christina's and we walked happily to the dance. No one was in the common room when we got there. They must already be at the dance.

We walked to the gym where the dance was located. It was the high school gym so it was huge. As we walked inside music blared from the DJ booth. Snowflakes decorated the walls and hung from the ceiling. Colored lights flashed on the dance floor. White confetti fell from the ceiling as we entered, appearing like snow. Kids from the middle school were there. Christina explained that they were allowed to come to our dances. We just weren't allowed to join the high school.

"Where's Connor?" I asked, searching the sea of dancing students for his 'Justin Bieber style' sandy blond hair. A few people glanced at me as I passed. I smiled because I knew they saw how pretty I looked.

Kate shrugged. "Maybe he's running late," she said, "come on, let's dance."

I nodded and we started dancing to 'Magic' by B.o.B. Some other girls and boys joined us. I didn't see Connor, though.

"Do you want to take a break?" Christina asked, "I'm thirsty."

Kate and I nodded. We went over to the table that had all kinds of snacks and drinks. Christina headed away to the drinks while Kate and I stayed near the snacks. I popped a Cheetoh into my mouth.

"Maybe you'll win best dressed," Kate said, "they're announcing it soon."

"Really?" I said, eagerly, "Well I'll go vote for you or… will Christina be mad if I did that?"

Kate smiled. "We don't have to tell her," Kate winked, "the votes are anonymous anyways. The box is over there."

I followed her gaze. At the end of the long table was a box with paper slips next to it. An older student sat there to monitor the voting. I went over and put Kate's name in the box. The student gave me a curious look as I turned away. In fact, a lot of other students were too.

"Why are the others giving me weird looks?" I asked Kate.

She smiled. "They're jealous," she said, "because you look really pretty tonight."

I beamed. "Thank you," I said, "this means a lot to me."

"You're welcome, Janie," Christina said, coming over with her drink, "I think I saw Connor over there." She pointed to the crowd of students dancing, "you should go."

"Are you going to come too?" I asked, feeling a little shy about going over there by myself.

"We can't," Christina said, "besides, he's your date. We'd be like third wheels if we came too."

"Have fun," Kate said, giving me a little push forward.

I nodded and slowly went in the direction they had pointed. I spotted Connor's sandy blonde hair. He was talking to a girl with red hair and a light peach colored dress. I squinted in the dark. I realized it was Claire.

"Connor," I said, as I reached him.

He turned around and took a step back when he saw me.

"What?" I asked.

Claire looked away and I thought I heard her snicker.

His mouth hung open in awe. "Um…you…" he stuttered.

"Is something wrong?" Kate asked him from behind me. Christina came over too.

"Janie looks great, doesn't she?" Christina said, "She's your date right?"

I waited for him to say something but he was speechless.

"He's not Jane's date," Claire said, narrowing her eyes, "he asked me and I said yes."

"I thought you weren't coming," Connor said, "I thought that's what you told me. So I asked Claire. I didn't know you changed your mind. Why didn't you tell me?"

"What?" I cried, not believing what I was hearing, "Kate said she told you I was coming and you were happy about going with me…"

Connor looked even more confused. "Kate never told me anything."

I glanced furiously at the two girls. They smirked.

"Don't say we didn't warn you," Christina said.

I stared at her, my lip began to quiver. My hands trembled. Tears glazed my eyes and I pinched myself hard so I wouldn't cry in front of them.

"Jane?"

A girl with straight black hair wearing a cool looking black dress gave me the same odd look. It was Melissa. She walked up to me and gave Christina, Kate, Connor, and Claire the dirtiest look. It even frightened me a little.

"You bitches did this didn't you?" she snarled, "I'd watch your backs if I were you. Come on, Jane, let's go."

She took my wrist and led me away from them. I could hear Kate and Christina's peals of laughter as I followed Melissa to the door.

"Now it's time to announce the winner of best dressed!" a voice from the DJ booth announced, "Jane Rumary!"

A beam of light rested on me. All the students turned to gawk at me. A few of them snickered, some of them whispered to each other, and Melissa stopped, her jaw set.

"Come on," Melissa said, softly, "let's get out of this hell hole."

I let her pull me out of the gym. Tears spilled down my cheeks.

"Why were they laughing?" I asked.

Melissa gave me a pitiful look. "Just come to the bathroom. I'll show you what those bitches did to you."

We walked quickly to the bathroom. I got inside and rushed to the mirror. My hair was definitely in a complicated knot that stuck out in places by hairspray. My face was a mess too. Red lipstick had been put messily on my lips so that it looked like a two year old had put it on. Glitter covered my face and my eyelids were thick with green eyeshadow. My cheeks were covered in purple-blue blush. I looked like a clown and a complete idiot. No wonder I was getting weird looks.

I started sobbing into my hands. "I can't believe I was so stupid," I cried.

Melissa placed a hand on my back. "You're not stupid," she said, "those girls are just mean. Here, let me take it off for you."

Melissa had me sit on a bench in the bathroom while she took it off.

"They're just jealous," she said, softly, "that's why they did this. You're so much prettier than they are."

"No I'm not," I said, acidly, "they're only jealous because Connor asked me to the dance. But it doesn't matter anymore because he went with Claire. Kate said she told him I'd go with him for me. Clearly she told him something else."

"I'm sorry, Jane," Melissa said, as she rubbed off the lipstick with a wet paper towel. "But you are pretty and just because you made a mistake doesn't mean you're ugly."

"All I wanted was to be accepted by them," I said, tears blurred my vision, "all of my life, I've been teased by people. I used to go to a different boarding school in Canada where my parents abandoned me when I was small and ever since my life has been miserable because of bullying. I thought it would be different here. I thought maybe people would like me. The only friends I've ever had are the Baudelaire's and you."

"You can't trust many people," she said, "they're mostly back-stabbers. I know because I've had people bully me too. In fact, when I was young, the girls at my school made fun of me because I had dorky glasses and braces so I switched to contacts though I still had to deal with the braces. Here, I'm ridiculed for my hair and how I dress. People see me and immediately think I'm a Goth or an emo. Do you remember that day at Company when I was angry because the Seniors weren't letting me use a practice room?"

I nodded. More tears escaped my eyes. "I didn't see much of it but you seemed really mad."

Melissa scoffed. "I was pissed," she said, "they said I wasn't allowed to use them because I was probably going to use it to do drugs. They tease me about stuff like that all of the time. I used to get really upset when people called me names. I still get a little angry but it doesn't bother me as much anymore. That's why I let everyone think I had issues because I just don't care anymore about what people think of me. Also I've been hurt by what really happened."

"What happened?" I asked. Melissa stopped rubbing the makeup off of my lips and moved to my eyes. I closed them so she could clean the eyeshadow off.

"My parents…" Melissa trailed off, "well they weren't really my parents. They adopted me when I was a baby but still…they died in a fire last summer while I was out at a concert with some of my friends. I loved my parents even though they weren't really mine. Even though I sometimes behaved rudely towards them. I mean, I've known them all of my life and now they're gone?" she swallowed hard.

"What happened to your real parents?" I asked, curiously.

"I-I don't really know for sure why they gave me up," Melissa said, "my adoptive parents told me my mother was trying to protect me from something that was supposed to be kept confidential. My parents think she died a few years ago…"

"What about your father?" I asked.

Melissa frowned. "My adoptive parents couldn't tell me anything about my father," she said, "He may still be alive though I can't be completely sure."

"Well, you're not alone," I muttered, "I lost my parents for reasons I'm not even close to learning. Apparently my parents passed away too. Mr. Poe, who's in charge of the affairs of the Baudelaire's and I told me they were killed in a car accident."

"I'm surprised Violet didn't tell you already," she said.

I shrugged. "She's nice," I said, "she probably didn't feel it was her place to tell other people."

Melissa smiled and laughed. "I admit Violet sometimes gets on my nerves," she muttered, "but I probably get on her nerves a lot more. But you should know that those girls aren't anywhere near as pretty as you are. Don't worry about school on Monday. If those girls are mean to you let me know and I'll get them for you."

"Thanks," I said. Tears still poured down my cheeks.

Melissa continued to clean the makeup off my face and soon only a few pieces of glitter rested on my face and they were barely noticeable. They would come off in the shower. Melissa worked on fixing my hair. She used a lot of water so when it fell down to my shoulders again it was a little damp.

"Do you want to go back out there?" Melissa asked.

I shook my head. I really didn't feel like going back into that gym. "I want to go back to my dorm." Melissa nodded.

"I can't come with you," she said, apologetically, "I've been helping with the dance and I'm on duty for clean up after. Will you be okay by yourself?"

I took a deep breath and nodded. "I think I'll be okay."

Melissa helped me up and we walked out of the bathroom. She eyed my dress and her eyes shone brightly.

"Give that dress to Violet when you can," Melissa said, "and tell her to give it to me. I'll make sure it gets 'safely' back to them." She winked before walking back towards the gym.

I looked down as I walked towards the front doors.

"Hey Jane!" a voice called.

I turned to see Christina and Kate approaching me. they were both wearing smirks on their faces.

"Don't talk to me," I spat.

"Did you have fun cleaning off all that makeup?" Kate said.

"You shouldn't be angry with us," Christina sneered, "we were only trying to cover up how ugly you are."

They laughed and a few girls standing nearby snickered too. I couldn't stand it. Every laugh felt as if someone was kicking me in the stomach over and over again. It made me think of my old school when Carmelita always used to tease me. All of the anger I'd kept inside from all of those times was suddenly pouring out of me as if I were a leaky faucet.

Before I could stop it, Christina's hair was turning fire engine red.

"My hair!" she cried. Kate's hair started to turn green. She screamed too.

But that wasn't the end of it. In an instant, their faces started to swell up like a balloon.

A group of people had paused to watch what was going on. They started laughing for different reasons. Someone took out their cellphone and snapped a photo of Kate and Christina who were still in shock.

"What's happening to us?" Kate managed through puffy lips. They both looked at me, with pure loathing.

I stepped back with my hands up innocently.

"I didn't," I said, though something told me I had done it.

There was a swarm of people now, gawking at the two. They covered their faces, looking humiliated. I started to snicker too.

"Hello Jane."

Everyone grew instantly silent. I looked up hesitantly. Alfonso stood behind me. His eyes were shining brighter than I've ever seen them.

"Who did this to these poor girls?" Alfonso asked.

"Um…" I faltered.

"Jane did it!" Kate cried.

Alfonso made an expression of fake astonishment.

"That's impossible!" I objected. "How could I have done that?"

"I think it's clear to all of us that it was most definitely you," Alfonso concluded, "I'd like to see you in my office tomorrow morning."

Kate and Christina shared a misshapen smirk before another teacher appeared and started to bring them to the nurse.

I sighed. "Fine," I muttered quietly to myself. I turned and walked briskly out the front doors into the frigid night. It was colder than it had been earlier and I didn't have a coat. I walked as quickly as I could back to the dorm. Fresh tears shed down my cheeks making me colder.

I knew this time Alfonso would succeed in taking me in his clutches. He would tell Mr. Lance who would tell Mr. Poe. Then I would get kicked out of this place. Just like last time. It seemed like a less horrible way but it was terrible all the more because I would be taken away from more than just this school. The last time, I wasn't so sad to leave but here…it was different. I had thought coming up with a way to leave would be hard. I guess I hadn't paid much attention to how much harder it would be to say goodbye.

I reached the dorm and swung open the doors. I walked into the common room and found Klaus sitting on one of the couches, reading a book. Tears flooded my eyes when I saw him. Klaus had been right this whole time and I hadn't listened to him.

"Klaus," I choked. He looked up and his eyes filled with worry when he saw my tear stained face.

"Jane," he said, concerned, "Wh-"

"C-can you read me something?" I asked. I hoped he wouldn't be angry with me for not listening to him. I just wanted to sit with him and listen to him read.

Klaus nodded and scooted over on the couch so I could sit beside him. He put an arm around me and began to read softly.

I tucked my legs up and rested my head on his shoulder as I listened. I couldn't take it anymore and began to sob. Klaus didn't ask about what happened or say 'I told you so'. Instead, he just sat with me while I cried.

* * *

REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW!

What did you think of the end and Jane's little revenge?


	12. Family

Hey! Thanks for all of the reviews!

This next chapter is kind of short. Just the aftermath of the last chapter and another cute moment between Jane and Klaus.

Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 12: Family**

I sat in the waiting room of the Administrative Building the next day. Alfonso was in Mr. Lance's office discussing the current situation. Both Kate and Christina were taken out of school by their parents to fix their still swollen faces and recolor their hair. I was glad that I got the opportunity to get back at them but I still felt bad and I had sort of wished it would disappear as quickly as it came. I didn't like them but I never wanted to actually hurt them.

Violet, Klaus, and Sunny only knew about what I had supposedly done to Kate and Christina. I had confessed to Klaus what had happened after I was able to stop bawling. Only Klaus knew that it had happened because of my Matilda magic thing. The Baudelaire's were the only people who really understood and none of them were angry with me either. I was at least thankful for that.

But I didn't want this to be my reason for leaving. So I decided I would try and convince them that I wanted to leave because I was the one being bullied.

Suddenly, the doors opened and I could hear a noise like someone coughing. I didn't need to look to realize who it was. Mr. Poe's cough gave him away instantly. He shuffled into the room and noticed me sitting nearby.

"Oh, goodness," He said, "what is going on here? Mr. Lance told me something bad has happened involving you. Is everything okay?"

I shrugged. "I'm not so great," I admitted, guiltily, "I'm afraid something bad has happened."

Mr. Poe frowned and adjusted his top hat before pausing to cough into his white handkerchief.

"Ah, Mr. Poe," Mr. Lance said as he came into the office proceeded by Alfonso. I kept my eyes averted. I didn't feel like receiving any of Alfonso's wicked smiles at the moment. "I'm glad you could make it at such short notice."

"Well I had to make sure everything was alright and taken care of," he replied, "What has happened?"

"I'm afraid Jane hasn't been getting along with the other students here," Mr. Lance said, "An incident occurred last night. Jane was seen humiliating two girls. She made their hair change color and their faces swelled up."

"It wasn't me, I swear," I protested, "Kate and Christina were bullying me. They pushed me down the stairs and I was the one who was humiliated, not them."

Mr. Lance narrowed his eyes. "That is highly unlikely. Why would they push you down the stairs? And Alfonso didn't recall seeing you looking humiliated at all."

"He saw them push me," I argued, "And Melissa Sampson witnessed my humiliation. She'll tell you."

"Melissa Sampson hardly qualifies as a witness," Alfonso said, bitterly, "That girl is nothing but trouble. I think we can all agree that Melissa should not be listened to."

I glared up at him but kept silent.

Mr. Poe coughed into his handkerchief. "Well, I've never met this Melissa girl but she does sound like a trouble maker and a bad influence for these orphans."

Mr. Lance frowned. "I'm afraid Alfonso is speaking the truth," he said, "she hasn't been a nice girl since her parents died."

"You mean she is an orphan too?" Alfonso asked. I clenched my fists, knowing what he was thinking.

"Yes," Mr. Lance said, "but I'm afraid I can't give her away to anyone who isn't a family member. I know you're interested in adopting a young orphan but Melissa will remain here until she comes of age."

"Oh, I never meant to adopt the girl," Alfonso said, wrinkling his nose in disgust, "I was only curious. Now you mentioned how the situation may result in Jane's removal of this school."

"Yes," Mr. Lance said, facing Mr. Poe, "That is exactly the reason why I called you here. I'm afraid we can no longer put up with this child's behavior. Expulsion is very rare here but in this case it must be. So Jane can go and pack up her things. Hopefully, you'll be able to find her a more suitable home."

Mr. Poe looked down at me with a very stern expression. I looked down as I rose from my seat and started for the door.

"Wait," Alfonso said, stopping everyone, including me, "Why don't I become the orphan's new guardian? I've been looking to adopt an orphan for quite some time. I think it's just horrible how these children have to live without real parents. I know I'm far from replacing them, but I hope I can become something close."

Mr. Poe and Mr. Lance exchanged glances. "You don't want to adopt this girl," Mr. Poe said, "She will only bring her troubles onto you."

"I agree," Mr. Lance said, "This orphan seems to have a bad past."

"And that's another reason why I'd love to help out," Alfonso said, "You see, I'm not only an acting teacher, I am also a very faithful man. I could bring little Jane out of the darkness of the devil and into God's hands. We'll go to confession first thing and then your spirit will be cleansed of all your sins."

"Well that does sound like a good idea," Mr. Poe said, "I'll think about it. Now, Jane, go and pack up your things while us adults discuss everything else. I'm very disappointed in you, Jane," he continued, sternly, "I thought you might have learned a lesson at your last school."

"That wasn't my fault," I argued.

But Mr. Poe had gone into a coughing fit as soon as I spoke.

"You're just lucky that Alfonso was kind enough to offer to adopt you after everything you've done," Mr. Poe said, "I just hope you learn to behave yourself."

I frowned to myself. Mr. Poe never understood anything. He had the impression that I was one of those bad kids as a result from having no real parents and having an unusual childhood. But I never intended for any of those things to happen. Last time, it was all a huge misunderstanding and so far I had no evidence to prove my innocence. Of course, no evidence suggested I was guilty of anything either which was why I wasn't sent into juvenile prison.

I did what I was told and left the Administrative Building. I trudged across the wintry campus. Kids stared as I passed by. Some of them snickered but the others just gave me odd looks like I was crazy. Actually, it had been rumored that I was insane for what I did to Kate and Christina and people were afraid to mess with me because they thought I would do it to them. I was relieved people were starting to back off and that would make my predicament slightly easier.

As I reached the dorm, I noticed someone sitting at the bench outside. It was Klaus. He looked up from the book he was reading and smiled. I plopped down beside him.

"Hi," I said, miserably.

"What's wrong?" Klaus asked. He realized what he just said and rephrased it. "What happened at the office?"

"Mr. Lance expelled me," I admitted, "Mr. Poe showed up and they started talking about my situation. Then Mr. Lance concluded that I wasn't welcome here anymore."

Klaus frowned. "Well if they're going to kick you out of here then tell them we're coming with you," he said, firmly.

"Klaus…" I faltered, "you can't come. Don't make me be the reason why you're unhappy."

"Are you going to be happy if you leave?" Klaus asked.

I shrugged. "I don't mind leaving this school," I admitted, "but I do mind leaving you and your siblings."

"So it's settled," Klaus said, "we'll come with you."

"They wouldn't allow it," I disapproved, "but thanks anyways."

"It's not so bad," Klaus said, "besides, Christmas is next week and isn't the holiday about being with family?"

"Yes," I admitted, "which is exactly why you three should stay here. I'm not family to any of you."

"You're close enough, Jane," Klaus said, "Family doesn't mean you're related. It just means a group of people who care a lot about each other and work as a unit."

"I think you read too much," I muttered, though it still brought a tear to my eyes at the thought. Family was the one thing I never had and have been trying to find for a long time. Klaus was right as usual. I wrapped my arms around him in a tight hug. "But I like you anyways."

"See?" Klaus said, brushing a strand of hair back and tucking it behind my ear. "Maybe that's the difference between us and Count Olaf," Klaus continued thoughtfully, "I think the reason why we've been able to survive him for so long is because we had each other. And we have been like a family. Count Olaf doesn't have that."

I sighed. "I should have realized that earlier," I muttered, "maybe things would be different. Maybe we would've stayed together."

"Don't be silly, Jane," Klaus said, "we all make mistakes and like a family we're going to endure the outcome together whatever it costs."

"I still think you read too much," I muttered again, "besides, I don't even celebrate Christmas."

"Hanukah?" Klaus asked.

"No," I said, "I don't mean it like that, I mean, I like all of the Christmas things such as the songs and the movies like 'Frosty the Snowman' it's just that…well…I never really believed in Santa Clause. When I was really young I did but all I ever got was a candy cane and no miracles. But maybe I'm complaining…I did end up leaving that place eventually which was what I had been wishing for. And I also found a 'family'. But now it's going to be taken away from me again and I'm scared of losing you all."

Klaus placed an arm around my shoulders. "I'll make sure you have a nice holiday this year," he said, "and you're not leaving without us so stop worrying. I know last time it might have been hard to leave since you barely knew anything else but remember what we've been saying. This time when you leave, you won't be alone."

"I hope so," I whispered, though I knew in my heart that could never happen.

"The only problem is that we still don't know what Alfonso is planning for us," Klaus said, "maybe expulsion isn't so bad after all, it might stop Alfonso's plans."

"Or it could help him," I muttered.

Klaus frowned. "We'll have to be careful," he said, "incase Alfonso tries something."

"Actually," I started, "Alfonso was the one who witnessed my 'incident' and took me to Mr. Lance. I think he was waiting for one of us to mess up so he could get us into trouble."

Klaus' eyes widened. "You don't think he's going to convince Mr. Poe to give us over to him." Suddenly he looked very frightened.

"He's done it before, hasn't he?" I said, "So I don't think he'll hesitate to do it again."

Klaus' grip on my shoulders seemed to tighten. "We'll need to prevent it somehow," Klaus said.

"He knows that Melissa is an orphan too," I said, "Mr. Lance isn't up to giving her away but you know, Count Olaf. He'll do pretty much anything to get his hands on money."

"We'll stop it," Klaus tried to reassure me, but he sounded doubtful, "I won't let him get away with any of us."

I nodded silently and moved closer to Klaus hoping I could hide from the world for a little bit and just spend as much time as I could with Klaus before I would be whisked away from the only family I ever knew.

* * *

This story will probably end in a couple more chapters. It'll probably be fourteen chapters instead of thirteen which i had hoped but the chapters would be too long if i did. I have the rest of the story planned out and almost finished so i'll upload the next chapters ASAP!


	13. Time

Another small chapter...Jane's feeling down about her current circumstance.

Enjoy! :)

* * *

Time is like quicksand. Once it starts, it never stops and sometimes it moves too quickly or too slowly for your taste. But either way, it's hard to escape from it.

This week moved quicker than ever. One moment, I was sitting on the bench outside with Klaus and before I knew it I was only a few hours away from the school play's performance. The entire week I had spent sulking about leaving. Alfonso was succeeding in his plan for adoption and was in the process of filling out documents and gaining custody. He infromed me that he would be taking me on Sunday the morning after the Company show.

So this week had been dedicated to spending as much time as possible with Klaus and his siblings. Klaus was still worried about Alfonso but I kept telling him that everything was fine and not to worry.

Klaus knew I would be leaving soon but I didn't exactly tell him when. I was afraid of telling him. I knew it would worry him and he would try to come too and I just couldn't let that happen.

I walked into the bathroom in my room and brushed my hair thoroughly. I set down the brush and stepped back to look over my reflection.

My hair was the usual, straight and blonde. There were dark circles under my eyes but by this time I was used to them. Small freckles dotted my small nose.

I looked the same as I always did. There wasn't any sign that these unfortunate events had occurred. It was like beach because one minute, there's a footprint and the next moment, a wave washes up and makes it seem like no one had ever set foot there. How could so much happen in such a small amount of time?

I was slightly nervous for tonight as it was my first real performance. But I made sure I knew all of my lines backwards and forwards. I even memorized the entire show because I was just so nervous about doing well. Klaus thought I was stressing out too much but I told him it was my way of coping with my nerves so he let it go.

I heard the door open and Megan came into the room. I stayed inside the bathroom. I didn't want to have to talk to her at the moment. I've been avoiding talking to anyone besides Klaus, his siblings, and Melissa since the dance. They all thought I was crazy, after all.

As I stood in the bathroom, I felt slightly guilty. I had never really apologized for ditching my old friends. No wonder they were still mad at me.

Megan didn't look up when I approached her. I sat down beside her on her bed.

"Hey, Meg," I said.

She looked up, seeming surprised.

"Are you nervous?" I asked when she didn't speak.

"Yes," she said, "I'm afraid I'm going to mess up."

"Oh, don't worry," I reassured her, "You'll be great."

Megan smiled nervously. "Thanks."

"I was so happy when you got picked as Alice," I added, "You deserved it."

"Really?" Megan said, "I thought you were mad at me for it."

I shook my head. "Christina was the one biting everyone's heads off, not me," I said, "I like being the Red Queen."

"Well, thanks," she said, smiling sweetly, "you'll be amazing too, I'm sure. Actually, I was secretly happy for you too."

"Thanks," I said.

"Klaus told us about what happened with the Company show," Megan said, "How those stupid girls shafted you. I'm sorry about that."

I shrugged. "It's okay," I said, "the song sounds way better without their nasally voices blocking out any real melody."

Megan laughed.

"Did Klaus mention his own part in the show?" I asked.

"No," Megan said.

"Well," I said, "I've heard Klaus sing and he's amazing. Think of John Mayer."

"Wow," Megan said, eagerly, "so he's singing something for the Company show?"

I nodded. "Don't tell him I told you, he's a little embarrassed about it."

"I won't tell," Megan said, gSo why didn't Claire and Nicole audition for the play?"

"Claire and Nicole usually audition for the musical only," Megan explained, "They're both amazing dancers."

"You're good too," I said, "better than I am."

Megan laughed. "You aren't that bad."

"Seriously?" I said.

We laughed before we both shared apologetic smiles. "I'm sorry that I ditched you guys," I said, guiltily, "I guess I was just too selfish to realize that you three were my real friends, not those stupid girls."

"I'm sorry too," Megan said, "we shouldn't have turned our backs on you, even if you had made a mistake."

"By the way, I had way more fun with you three than I did with Kate and Christina," I said, candidly, "plus they're so self-conscious. They eat like cucumbers everyday for lunch and Christina is constantly moody. Honestly, I sort of feel bad for them."

"They were probably jealous because they realized you were better than them," Megan said, "I mean, Connor Samuels actually asked you to the dance."

"I didn't actually go with him, though," I said.

Megan grimaced. "Oh, and Claire is sorry too," she added, "She honestly didn't know."

"I'm not mad," I said, truthfully, "I'm just glad you don't think I'm crazy like everyone else seems to."

"It seems ridiculous that they're accusing you of it," Megan said, "How could you have died their hair and caused their faces to swell. They probably had a weird allergic reaction to something."

We laughed and I kept quiet about my Matilda thing. I didn't need another reason for people to think I was insane. But I was just relieved that something good came out of everything. I found some really good friends.

It was after the play and I hurried to get changed so I could go see everyone in the foyer. That's where everyone usually waited after shows like this.

I walked down the hallway leading from backstage to the front foyer when I was ready. Alfonso stood near the door.

I couldn't help but glance worriedly at him as I opened it and stepped into the foyer. Klaus was with his siblings on the other side of the room, out of earshot. Alfonso leaned down and patted me on the top of my head.

"Good job, Jane," he said, "Maybe you do have _some_ talent."

He paused to wink and grinned wickedly when I frowned at him. I shuddered.

"You'd better say goodbye to your friends," Alfonso continued, "the papers are nearly done. Mr. Poe is back again and is going to finish the documents tomorrow morning. And then, on Sunday we leave and you're mine. Oh, and I do expect you to call me your father for now on."

I glared at him. "I agreed to let you adopt me," I said, "but that doesn't make you any less than a terrible villain. You'll never be my father no matter how many adoption papers you sign."

"We'll settle this later," Alfonso said, scowling. "Enjoy your last day here." He patted my shoulder, pushing me forward as he did.

I bit my lip, fighting back the wave of sadness that hit me. I walked straight ahead towards Violet, Klaus, and Sunny while trying compose myself.

I reached the Baudelaire's and forced a smile. I couldn't meet their eyes as they congratulated me and told me how great I was. I was silent as we walked back to the dorm, giving them responses that required little talking. I said good night to Violet and Sunny in the common room. They were both taken by surprise when I abruptly hugged them.

"I-I just appreciate everything you've done," I said.

They smiled and turned to leave. I felt a lump in my throat. If it was going to be this hard to say goodbye to Violet and Sunny tomorrow, I had no idea how I was going to handle saying goodbye to Klaus.

I turned to face him now and had to clench my fists to stop myself from breaking down right in front of him. I knew by the look on his face, that he sensed the change in my mood.

"Are…you alright?" he asked.

I nodded. "I'm just tired."

"You seem worried about something," Klaus said.

"I'm fine," I insisted.

Klaus leaned against one of the tables. Silence stretched out as neither of us spoke.

"I noticed that Alfonso was talking to you," he said, after a moment, "he didn't upset you, did he?"

"It's Alfonso, Klaus," I said, as if it were obvious, "he can't help but upset people. But I'm alright."

"Good," Klaus said, smiling.

I smiled back but after a moment of silence, our smiles faded.

"Well, uh, goodnight," Klaus said, beginning to head for the stairs to the boys' rooms.

I reached out and touched his wrist. He stopped and looked at me, curiosity filled his brown eyes.

"D-don't go yet," I said.

Klaus looked at me questioningly but nodded. I relaxed knowing that Klaus would spend a little more time with me. I'd have all day tomorrow too.

"Do you want to sit down?" he asked, gesturing to some empty library chairs.

I nodded and we sat down. I stared at my hands.

"Jane…" Klaus said, slowly, "If there's something troubling you, you know you can tell me. I'll understand and try to help you."

"I know," I said, "but I'm fine."

Klaus raised his eyebrows.

"Honestly," I insisted, "I'm just worried. Alfonso's still here and so far he hasn't done anything to get our fortunes at least what we know of."

"We'll be okay, Jane," Klaus said, touching my wrist lightly, "whatever he's planning, we'll figure it out. We'll stop him. We always have."

I nodded since I could barely speak without my voice breaking.

"He won't get us, Jane," Klaus tried to reassure me, "I won't let him."

I nodded again but I couldn't stop the tear that escaped down my left cheek.

"I promise, Jane," Klaus said, firmly, "I won't let him hurt you."

I just nodded as more tears streamed down my face.

"Everything will be okay, Jane," he said, gently.

I kept crying and Klaus put a comforting arm around my shoulders. "It'll be okay because…no matter what Olaf does to harm us, we'll always have each other. Remember?"

I just kept crying and Klaus just sat with me as I cried the way he did after the dance. We sat together until I ran out of tears.

Klaus rose from his seat and waited expectantly for me to do the same. I hesitated. 'We'd have more time in the morning,' I thought to reassure myself.

I sighed and reluctantly walked over to the stairs with him.

"Well, goodnight, Jane," Klaus said, "You'll feel better in the morning."

"Goodnight, Klaus," I managed.

Klaus began to go up the stairs to the boys' room and I turned away so Klaus didn't have to see the fresh tears I knew were about to come.

"Jane."

I whirled. Klaus had come back down. He took a step toward me so we were close enough to touch.

In that moment I wanted to tell him the truth. But how could I tell him now? What if it ruined everything we had? What if he only liked me as a friend? So I held back the words I wanted to say and said what I could. "If something ever happens to me. Just promise that you'll never forget me and that you'll remember me as your friend."

Klaus stared at me, concern in his eyes. "Of course I'll never forget you but nothing is going to-"

"Just promise me," I interrupted, tears blurring my vision.

Klaus gently tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear. "I promise, that if anything ever happens to you, that I'll always remember you as my friend and I'll never, ever forget you."

I smiled at the sincerity in his voice before I hugged him. I held on to him tightly and it took Klaus a couple of tries to make me let go of him.

"You're probably tired," Klaus said, softly, "you need to go to bed. I'll see you in the morning. We've got that Company show in the evening. So good night, Jane."

"G-good night, Klaus," I whispered back.

He squeezed my hand and then turned for the stairs. I closed my eyes. How could I ever find the courage to really say goodbye for good?

* * *

R&R please!


	14. Happy

here's a new chapter! :) it's the Company Show including Jane, Klaus, and Melissa!

* * *

**Chapter 14: Happy**

The next day went by more quickly than I'd hoped. I did as I had planned and spent the entire day with Klaus, practicing for the evening performance. I was slightly more nervous than I was yesterday. The play wasn't so bad because I was on stage with other people. This time I would be alone. I tried to explain this to Klaus today:

"This is different," I had explained, "I'll be singing in front of the entire school all by myself. What if they laugh at me?"

"They're not going to," Klaus reassure me.

"And how do you know for sure?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.

"Because I've heard you sing," Klaus said, "and I can assure you that no one will make fun of that. And if they do, it's because they're jealous."

"Don't talk like that," I grumbled, "you know I'm not that good."

"How much do you practice singing?" Klaus asked.

"Whenever I get the chance," I replied.

"Then you have nothing to worry about," Klaus said, "There's no doubt that you can sing and you seem to practice a lot. This should be easy for you."

I sighed. "I know," I said, "but I could still mess up. What if no sound comes out when I'm up there? What if I'm off pitch?"

"Slow down, Jane," Klaus said, grabbing my shoulders so I realized I was stressing again, "Just take a deep breath and relax. Everything will go fine, I'll make sure of it."

"I still don't believe you," I muttered.

"Well, Violet wants you to go to her room now to get ready for tonight," Klaus said, giving me a small grin, "maybe it'll help you relax."

"Maybe," I said, "where will you be?"

"I'll mostly just practice," Klaus said, smiling nervously, "you're not the only one who's nervous."

"Don't be," I said, "You'll do fine."

Klaus cocked an eyebrow making me grin.

"So I guess it's settled that if I stop worrying," Klaus said, "than you will too."

I nodded but I highly doubted I could do that. My stomach wasn't feeling well all day because tomorrow's fate seemed to make me edgy. The other reason was because I neglected to eat much today besides a couple pieces of toast.

* * *

"Come on," Violet said, grabbing my arm and pulling me up the stairs to her room.

"What are you doing?" I asked, confused.

She smiled as she led me down the hallway.

"You'll see," she said.

Violet led me to her room. She opened the door. Melissa was spreading make up out on a cloth and a dress was lying on one of the beds. It was a grape colored dress with only one strap on my right shoulder. A sash was placed below my chest and a white flower had been placed at the right side. The zipper was in the front of the dress and it was short enough to reach just above knee height. Nice black shoes with a small heel were lying beside the dress.

"Hey, Jane," Melissa said, getting up from the floor, "what do you think?"

I looked at them both in amazement. "How?"

"It was sort of Klaus' idea. I admit we had help, though," Violet said, "Julia, Claire's older sister, asked Claire if you could borrow one of her dresses. You look about the same size. Melissa supplied the makeup and hair stuff. Melissa found those heels. I just hope they are the right size."

"Claire helped?" I asked, happy to know she had forgiven me too.

"Yes," Violet answered.

"Alright," Melissa cut in, "Now you can use the shower and when you're done I'll start with your hair. Hurry though, we don't have a lot of time."

Violet showed me the bathroom. I hesitated.

"Violet, you don't have to do this," I said, quietly so only she could hear, "neither should Melissa."

"We want to," she insisted, "Melissa is getting ready too. She's in the show."

"This is too much," I said.

"Just think of it as an early Christmas present," Violet said.

"Violet," I complained, "how am I going to repay you for this?"

"Your performance will be enough," Violet said, "Besides, Klaus told me about your past holidays. My siblings and I were fortunate enough to enjoy holidays like this with our family. Now it's your turn to receive something."

I sighed. "I'll let you," I said, "but it'll only make me feel guilty for not giving something back."

Violet closed the bathroom door, leaving me to myself. I sighed and took a quick shower.

Violet had left a bathrobe on a hook attached to the door. I put it on and exited the bathroom.

Violet walked past me back into the bathroom and placed a chair at the sink. She finished by draping a cloth over the mirror. She explained that I wasn't allowed to look until I was finished.

Violet gestured for me to sit in the chair. Reluctantly, I sat down and let her brush my hair. She blow dried it and brushed it out again. After, she brought out a curling iron.

"It'll look good," she reassured, when I opened my mouth to protest. When I had done this with Kate and Christina, they had kept it simple and only straightened my hair. I was a little nervous to see how I looked with wavy hair since my hair was already so stubbornly straight. It only got wavy if I left it in braids for a day or if I went to bed with wet hair.

After Violet finished with my hair, Melissa came into the bathroom looking very pretty in a thigh length silver dress with flowers embroidered into the fabric. Her hair was pinned up in a complicated hairdo. She took over with makeup. Violet helped by handing her the products but Melissa seemed to be good at it. I noticed she wore a bit of dark makeup on her eyes. I'd known Melissa well enough to think it was actually kind of a cool look. Like Jenny Humphrey on Gossip Girl.

When they were finished with my make up, Violet got the dress from the other room and they both left so I could put it on. They gave me the shoes to put on next and soon I was done and ready to go.

They pulled off the towel and showed me my reflection. My usual boring straight blonde hair was curled slightly at the ends. Instead of being flat, my hair had received a little volume thanks to Melissa's hair products. Violet had finished by pinning my hair softly at the back. My eyes were decorated with pink eyeshadow and my lashes were thick and curled at the ends. Melissa had used Lady Gaga's pink lipstick on my own lips making myself feel even better. A light layer of pink blush was put on my cheeks. The grape colored dress flowed down to just above knee-height. And the gold heels went well with it.

"What do you think, Jane?" Melissa asked, putting an arm around me.

"I look great," I cried, "thank you so much."

"No problem Jane," Violet said, "it was actually a lot of fun."

"Well, now I'm going to have a guilty conscience," I muttered, "but despite that thanks again."

"Let's go," Melissa said, "Jane and I are supposed to be there an hour before."

* * *

I walked into the common room to find Klaus and Sunny sitting on some bean bags reading. Klaus was dressed with beige pants and a nice shirt. His hair was the same except it looked like he had combed it out a bit. They looked up when the two saw us approach.

"Wow," Klaus said, "you look great."

I rolled my eyes. "Don't be such a liar."

"Did you see yourself yet?" Klaus raised his eyebrows.

"I did," a smile appearing. "okay, fine," I gave up, "I do sort of look pretty."

"Ful!" Sunny shrieked. I knew it was Sunny's way of saying I looked pretty.

"You look gorgeous, Jane," Melissa said, "I know you just love to be modest but don't insult our abilities."

"I'm sorry," I said, "Thanks to you two I look 'gorgeous' tonight."

Melissa grinned.

Violet checked her watch. "It's time for you, Klaus, and Jane to go."

Melissa nodded and Klaus rose from his beanbag. Violet picked Sunny up.

"We'll see you in a little bit," Violet said, "We can't wait."

"Thank you, Violet," I said.

She smiled. "Any time Jane." She carried Sunny away up the stairs.

We started for the auditorium. Klaus carried the guitar he would be playing.

"Violet told me it was your idea," I said to Klaus, as we trudged to the auditorium.

Klaus shrugged. "It was both our ideas. I saw how happy you were that day you showed up to breakfast wearing that make up and clothes you borrowed so I thought it was the best way to cheer you up. You haven't been looking very happy this week."

"Thanks," I said, "except now I'm in major debt because I haven't had the chance to repay you."

"Your performance will do," Klaus said, repeating what Violet said earlier.

* * *

The show had been going on for at least twenty minutes now and it was Melissa's turn. She had told me she was singing an acoustic version of a song called Funeral by the Band of Horses, one of her favorite bands.

She walked on stage, her head high and shoulders back. I admired her courage and how she always looked so tough. Yet she could be nice if she wanted to. I wished I had her poise that I could walk up on that stage without a care in the world what everyone else thought. I had often looked up to her ever since I found out how kind she could be, similar to how I looked up to Violet.

Melissa sat on a stool that had been placed in the center of the stage. A mic was positioned in front, ready for her. She took the acoustic guitar she was carrying and put the strap around her, resting it on her thighs. She began her song and although not many people liked her, it was hard for them not to be interested.

_"I'm coming up only to hold you under_

_I'm coming up only to show you wrong_

_And to know you is hard and we wonder_

_To know you all wrong, we were_

_Ooh, ooh_

_Really too late to call, so we wait for_

_Morning to wake you; it's all we got_

_To know me as hardly golden_

_Is to know me all wrong, they were_

_At every occasion I'll be ready for a funeral_

_At every occasion once more is called a funeral_

_Every occasion I'm ready for the funeral_

_At every occasion one brilliant day funeral_

_I'm coming up only to show you down for_

_I'm coming up only to show you wrong_

_To the outside, the dead leaves, they all blow_

_Before they died had trees to hang their hope_

_Ooh, ooh_

_At every occasion I'll be ready for the funeral_

_At every occasion once more is called the funeral_

_At every occasion I'm ready for the funeral_

_At every occasion one brilliant day funeral_

_Ooh, ooh."_

Applause went up in the auditorium. As no one really liked her, her performance didn't receive as much credit that it really deserved. But like any performer, Melissa was gracious as she walked off the stage.

"Good job," I said, making her smile slightly.

"Thanks, Jane," she said, "Break a leg."

I smiled back. My nervousness from earlier came back and after seeing that performance, I didn't think mine was going to be nearly as good.

"I'm going to go outside for a minute," I told Klaus who had been waiting with me, "I need some air."

"Do you want me to come?" Klaus asked, concerned from seeing my worried expression.

"Don't worry," I said, uneasily, "I'll be back."

I hurried out the backstage door that led directly outside, behind the building. I found a small bench nearby and sat down, staring up at the starry sky. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, trying to ease my anxiety. I still felt humiliated about last weekend and I knew I would be made fun of. I wasn't like Melissa. I wasn't strong like she was.

"Jane."

Klaus had followed me outside. He stood beside the bench, his eyes filled with concern.

"They need you back in there," Klaus said, "Are you okay?"

"I'm afraid I'll mess up," I blurted, "and Kate and Christina will be there for sure. What if I humiliate myself in front of them again?"

Klaus sighed and sat down beside me.

"Do you remember when we were staying at the Lumbermill?" he asked, softly. I nodded. How could I forget? "When I was trying to invent a contraption to save Charles I thought when the invention failed we were going to be taken into Shirley's clutches. But you were there and you told me that you believed that I could do it." He paused and glanced briefly up at the sky. "Well this is just like that. You tell yourself that you can't do this performance because you don't believe in yourself. But I do."

"Thanks," I said, "but I don't know how to convince myself. Every time I get near that stage I feel like I should run away from it."

"Jane, you can't just give up," Klaus said, softly, taking my hand gently, "you're not like that. You, _you_ always have courage. I mean, you weren't afraid to sneak into Shirley's office to save me."

"I was afraid," I whispered, tears brimmed my eyes.

"But you still did it," Klaus said, grinning, "and if you can do that, than this should be a piece of cake for you. Not to mention all the other troubles we've had."

"I know, but they're going to laugh at me," I said, "I've completely humiliated myself. They all think I'm crazy."

"Not everyone thinks that," Klaus said, quietly.

"And as great as it sounds," I continued, " I don't want this performance to be the reason why other people want to be my friend. If they can't like me for me than it's not worth it. I just…I just want what Melissa has. I want enough confidence to do what I love and not let people take it away from me. I don't care if those people want to be my friends or not, I just want a little respect from them."

"Well," Klaus said, adjusting his glasses, "You can't keep hiding if you really want that. It's like Aunt Josephine. She was always afraid of everything and all her fear kept her from doing the things she used to love. Don't let fear stop you from doing what you love too."

"I don't want to sing for people who don't care or only like me for my talent," I whispered.

Klaus paused. "Then don't sing for them," he said, his brown eyes soft. "Don't sing for Violet, or Melissa, or Sunny, or Megan, or Claire, or Nicole, or even me. You go out there and sing for you. And when you're up there, it won't matter what they think because you can't change who you are. But if you're not ready to go out there in front of every one and sing like you did for me, then I'll understand. But I just don't want you to miss out on an opportunity that you've been working so diligently for your entire life."

I bit my lip and nodded. "I'll go," I whispered, "but only for you...and myself, I guess." Tears filled my eyes because I was just really going to miss him. I leaned my head on his shoulder and wept silently.

* * *

We waited for my name to be called by one of the stage crew members. He led me to one of the wings with Klaus behind me. The crew member told me to wait for the announcers to call my name.

"So I've decided to sing a different song," I told Klaus.

"What song?" he asked.

"Something I've been working on for a while," I said, "but I can't tell you what it is. I know it off by heart, the piano part too."

Before he could respond, my name was announced.

I bit hard on my lip. My nerves from before had returned but I could handle them now as long as I kept taking deep breaths.

Klaus touched my shoulder gently. "It'll be alright, Jane. I'll be right here the entire time."

I gave him a slight smile. I took a deep breath. Butterflies filled my stomach.

"Break a leg," Klaus said.

I took a shaky step forward. Then another. I didn't let myself look at the audience as I took a seat at the piano. That was when I accidentally looked.

Hundreds of people sat waiting in their seats for me to begin. Some people were whispering to each other. The girls who had teased me were giggling. I clenched my teeth and looked down at the piano. I took a deep breath before I started to play and sing:

_"Someone once told me that you have to choose_

_What you win or lose, you can't have everything_

_Don't you take chances, you might feel the pain_

_Don't you love in vain, 'cause love won't set you free_

_I could stand by the side and watch this life pass me by_

_So unhappy, but safe as could be."_

I glanced towards the wings and saw Klaus smiling encouragingly at me. I turned back to look at the piano as I played. I thought about everything we'd been through. Uncle Monty's awful murder, Stephano, Hurricane Herman, Dr. Orwell and her hypnosis. It brought tears to my eyes.

_"So what if it hurts me?_

_So what if I break down?_

_So what if this world just throws me off the edge_

_My feet run out of ground?_

_I gotta find my place, I wanna hear my sound_

_Don't care about all the pain in front of me_

_'Cause I'm just trying to be happy, ooh._

_Just wanna be happy, oh."_

My parents came to the front of my thoughts. And a small part of me wondered what they would say if they were here. Would they be proud of me? I realized as I sang how much I missed them even if they had never truly been there. A tear slid down my cheek.

_"Holding on tightly, just can't let it go_

_Just trying to play my role, slowly disappear, oh_

_But all these days, they feel like they're the same_

_Just different faces, different names, get me out of here_

_But I can't stand by your side, oh no_

_And watch this life pass me by, pass me by."_

I caught Klaus' gaze then and saw him smiling at me. I realized in that moment that it shouldn't matter that after tonight, I may not ever see Klaus or his siblings ever again. What mattered was this moment now.

_"So what if it hurts me?_

_So what if I break down?_

_So what if this world just throws me off the edge_

_My feet run out of ground?"_

If I wasted my time thinking about the bad things in my life, I would never see the great things. Maybe what this song was saying related to my life too. I'll always face struggles in life and sometimes I'll have to just stay strong and try to overcome them.

_"I gotta find my place, I wanna hear my sound_

_Don't care about all the pain in front of me_

_'Cause I'm just trying to be happy, oh, happy, oh."_

I spotted Alfonso in the crowd. He had a strange look on his face that I thought looked like a cross between skepticism and resentment. That only brought me more sadness over what was to come tomorrow. Another tear slid down my cheek as my heart sank and I almost stopped all together. But I closed my eyes and kept going because I knew Klaus was counting on me.

_"So any turns that I can't see_

_Like I'm a stranger on this road_

_But don't say victim, don't say anything."_

And everything suddenly slid into place like a puzzle piece. I was still upset to be leaving tomorrow but maybe I just had to accept that life was never going to go how I wanted it too. I had to be strong.

_"So what if it hurts me?_

_So what if I break down?_

_So what if this world just throws me off the edge_

_My feet run out of ground?"_

And even in the darkest moment of my life yet to come, I'd always have these memories to hold on to. And maybe, just maybe…everything will somehow turn out okay.

_"I gotta find my place, I wanna hear my sound_

_Don't care about all the pain in front of me_

_I just wanna be happy, oh, yeah, happy, oh, happy_

_I just wanna be, oh, I just wanna be happy_

_Oh, happy."_

Because after everything, I found the one thing I had always been looking for; love. And I'd found it with the Baudelaire's.

Applause and cheers erupted in the auditorium. I smiled softly at the crowd as I walked off. As soon as I reached him, I squished him in a tight hug, letting a few tears escape.

"Why are you still crying?" Klaus asked.

I shrugged. "I'm just…um, happy, I guess," I said making Klaus give me a small smile. That wasn't a complete lie. I just felt content like I've accepted my fate and knew I couldn't change it. So I just was making the best of the little happiness I had left. "Thank you so much, for everything."

"You're thanking me?" Klaus said, raising his eyebrows, "I didn't do anything. That was all you."

"Oh, stop," I said, shoving him playfully, "if it weren't for you, I probably wouldn't have gone up there."

"It wasn't so bad, was it?" Klaus said, giving me a knowing smile.

I took a deep breath. "No, not at all."

* * *

Klaus' performance is next chapter and i've already written it so i'll update ASAP!

Thanks for all of the reviews! 3

BTW, Jane's song was the accoustic version of Happy by Leona Lewis. You should check it out, it made me cry a little when i listened to it. And yes it's the song i used for the trailer i posted on youtube. If you haven't seen the trailer yet, go to the **Links **section of my profile and you'll find the link for it there. :)

Melissa's song: Funeral by Band of Horses (Acoustic)

Because i'm very bad at describing dresses there are also some links on my profile to see a glimpse of Melissa and Jane's dresses.

As always, Review, Review, Review!


	15. Don't Let Me Go

Here's a new and final chapter of the Dreary Drama! ENJOY!

* * *

**Chapter 15: "Don't Let Me Go"**

I stood backstage as another girl finished the monologue she had written. Klaus' turn was soon. He was supposed to enter from the opposite side of the stage and I was waiting to congratulate him when he came off.

Someone touched my shoulder suddenly and I stiffened under those bony hands.

"It's time for us to be leaving," Alfonso said in a low voice so only I could hear.

I blinked. "What?" I said, incredulously, "We're not supposed to leave until tomorrow morning."

"Plans change," Alfonso said, "I've finished signing every last paper and you now belong to me. Why would we wait for tomorrow morning?"

"Because I haven't had the chance to say goodbye yet," I complained.

"Well, that's too bad then," Alfonso said, "we've got a long drive and I want to leave as soon as possible. You've done your little song so there's nothing to complain about."

"I can't go yet," I glanced back towards the stage. Klaus was on now, sitting at the piano. He nervously reached toward the microphone. "Just wait until it's over."

"Hi everyone," he began, sounding nervous. He cleared his throat. "I've, um chosen this song for a special reason. This is dedicated to someone who's become closer to me over these past few months. If it wasn't for her, I'd never have the courage to do this."

Alfonso stood in front of me, blocking my view.

"Let's go, now," he demanded, "I'm not waiting for bookworm to sing his stupid song."

"It's not stupid," I argued, stepping forward and pushing past him to see.

"…Jane Rumary is her name and I hope she's listening."

He began to play a song that sounded nothing like Desperado, which is what I was expecting to hear.

"Lying beside you, here in the dark

Feeling your heart beat with mine

Softly you whisper, you're so sincere

How could our love be so blind?"

I felt breathless all of the sudden and butterflies swarmed in my stomach but I wasn't sure why.

"We sailed on together

We drifted apart

And here you are by my side"

"It's time to go," Alfonso said, growing angrier. He grabbed my arm and began steering me towards the door. I tried to resist.

"Let go," I cried, "I need to see this." I tried desperately to escape, but it was no use and no one else was around to stop it. My mind was numb at the moment, trying to fully understand the song, and it was hard to concentrate.

Alfonso dragged me out the doors to the backstage hallway that was a way of exiting for the performers. I could still sort of hear Klaus but it was muffled slightly and I couldn't make out some of the words.

"So now I come to you, with open arms

Nothing to hide, believe what I say

So here I am with open arms

Hoping you'll see what your love means to me

Open arms "

We were in the foyer outside of the auditorium now. I kept struggling to free myself as Alfonso dragged me to the exit.

"No!" I cried, "Let me go! I need to listen!"

"Your boyfriend's little love song isn't important right now," Alfonso said, irritated, "we're leaving whether you want to or not. I'm your father now and you'll do as I say."

But I wasn't listening to Alfonso. Well, I had been but I just zoned out after a bit. My mind was still frozen and I was feeling breathless again. But this time…I understood why.

"…Love…song?" I asked in a whisper, freezing to the spot. My heart thumped louder than I'd ever heard it.

"Well, of course," Alfonso said, sounding aggravated. He paused in dragging me to the front doors, "Why else would he sing this song?"

I felt like I'd been hit by a ton of bricks. Love. '_He liked me!'_ my mind screamed.

And before I could think, I had shoved past Alfonso and raced towards the doors of the auditorium not caring what kind of trouble I would get in later. I swung open the doors and froze in the back of the center aisle as the boy I liked more than any other sang to me. _Me!_

"So now I come to you, with open arms

Nothing to hide, believe what I say

So here I am with open arms

Hoping you'll see what your love means to me

Open arms."

I was so stunned that I couldn't stop the hands that grabbed me and dragged me away from the auditorium. Not even when Alfonso dragged me outside into the cold night did my look of utter shock and realization fade. I don't know why I was acting like this but it was like I had been awakened from a deep sleep to something that no thousand words could describe.

* * *

**Klaus Baudelaire**

I finished my song and walked off stage as the crowd applauded me. I couldn't care less about them. My mind was on one person; Jane Rumary.

Except, as I walked off the stage, she wasn't standing where I had expected her. Maybe she had gone to sit with Violet and Sunny. I hurried from the backstage area and into the foyer where students and adults were beginning to gather, as it was the end of the show. I found Violet and Sunny in the crowd.

Violet hugged me. "That was amazing Klaus," she said.

"Gadas!" Sunny shrieked which was her way of saying, "I had no idea you could sing."

"Oh, Jane is so lucky," Violet said, "where is she?"

I frowned. "She's not with you?"

They exchanged worried glances. "No," Violet said, "we thought she was waiting back stage for you."

"I thought so too," I said, growing truly scared that something bad happened.

"Maybe she left early," Violet said, "or she could've left straight away. She looked tired."

I shook my head. Something told me otherwise. "Jane wouldn't do that," I said, firmly, "She wouldn't leave like that." I had a strange feeling in my gut that something was very wrong and I was very scared of finding out.

They were silent.

"I have to look for her," I said, abruptly. I started for the doors.

"We'll come with you," Violet said, "I'm sure she's okay. Why don't I check the Ladies' room?"

I nodded but kept walking. "I'll meet you back at the common room."

I hurried to the common room.

"Jane?" I called as I entered. I looked everywhere and I couldn't find her anywhere. I found Megan sitting in the common room.

"Have you seen Jane?" I asked.

She shook her head. "Not since her performance. Tell her I loved it and yours too."

"Thanks," I said, stiffly and swiftly walked back outside. I checked the library and anywhere that Jane could be. I cried out frustratedly when I still found nothing.

'Where could she have gone?' I thought, 'how could she have just disappeared?' then my eyes rested on the auditorium building. My eyes narrowed. Did Alfonso have something to do with it?

I thought about it. Jane had mentioned Alfonso's attempt to convince Mr. Poe to let him adopt us. She didn't say anything though. A few weeks ago Jane started acting strangely like she was hiding something. That was after that one day after Acting class when Alfonso had a talk with her alone about something. Jane had said it had been about the play but now I wasn't too sure. And then, Jane had abruptly left that Tuesday night saying how she had to go to 'math extra help'. That was odd because Jane had been doing fine in math and usually we did our homework together so we could help each other out if necessary. Could that mean what I thought it meant? Had Jane been keeping something secret from me and everyone else? Was Alfonso succeeding in his plans and using Jane to do it? Was he taking Jane away at this very moment?

"No," I said, firmly, suddenly even more afraid. I clenched my fists in anger as that realization hit me. I couldn't allow Alfonso to hurt another person I cared about.

So I raced in the direction I was hoping Jane would be. The Administrative Building was close enough that I reached it rather quickly. As I was almost to the doors, they began to swing open. I moved behind a bush nearby and placed my glasses on the ground. I'd learned this trick from Violet years ago when we would listen in to our parents' conversations. Clearly, Alfonso didn't want me here so I had to stay hidden for now. Mr. Poe's large figure and Mr. Lance's thinner figure appeared from inside the building, followed by two others. Alfonso's hand was placed on Jane's shoulder.

"Don't worry Mr. Poe," he was saying, "this girl will be well taken care of as long as I'm her guardian. I promise to be a wonderful father and teach this girl the ways of God because even the sinners can be saved."

"I know," Mr. Poe said, "I told you about what this nice looking girl did. She nearly caused the death of two students at her last school."

I gaped, confused. Jane, a killer? "No," I whispered to myself, shaking my head, "Not Jane."

"You mean the fire?" Alfonso said, glancing briefly at Jane. I saw his eyes shining brightly. "Yes, you told me, but I assure you I will watch her closely to keep it from happening again."

I frowned to myself. What fire? I knew there had to be some sort of explanation that would clear everything up. Jane was too good to seriously hurt someone. But what if she wasn't the girl I thought her to be? Could she be covering up an even bigger secret? Had Jane committed a crime?

Jane, who was looking away, grimaced. Small lines appeared on her forehead and I thought I saw a tear slide down her cheek. I felt a pang in my heart as I saw it and I grew livid with the man I knew was the reason for Jane's tears. He was the reason for all of our tears.

"Now, I'm happy you've agreed to this," Mr. Lance continued, "This school can't tolerate anymore of this nonsense. We can't maintain our status as a great school with students who don't behave theirselves."

"I apologize for all of the issues that arose from this matter," Mr. Poe said, "I hope there will be some way I will be able to make it up to you and this school."

"I think Jane should be the one apologizing," Alfonso said, "after all it's the right thing to do, right Jane?"

Jane looked up and nodded silently. "I'm sorry," she said, quietly, "I won't let it happen again."

The adults continued chatting in front of the fountain. Alfonso looked edgy as if he would find a reason to leave at any moment.

"Well, it's getting late and I think we'd better be leaving," Alfonso said, "We have a long trip if we're going to Canada."

I frowned. Canada?

"Canada?" Jane asked, meekly.

"Well, of course," Alfonso replied, "That's where my home is."

"You're right, Alfonso," Mr. Lance said, "it's best you leave now, although I'm sad to see another great teacher leave this school."

I knew I needed to act now or I would be too late. I slid out from behind the bush.

"Wait!" I cried as I hurried over.

They all turned to stare at me looking bewildered except for Alfonso who just looked furious. Jane didn't look happy to see me instead she looked distraught.

"Oh, look," Alfonso said, "it's Jane's little friend. Claude is it?"

"It's Klaus," I muttered, in a half-growl.

"What are you doing here, Klaus?" Mr. Poe asked.

"What is Jane doing here?" I asked, ignoring his question. "Why is she leaving with him?"

"Klaus," Jane said, quietly, "go back to the common room."

"Why, Jane is my daughter now," Alfonso said, I could see him tighten his grip on Jane, "I adopted this orphan as my own because I felt so sad that this little girl lost her way."

"There's nothing wrong with Jane," I snarled, "the only thing wrong is you. Mr. Poe, this man isn't who he says he is. It's Count Olaf."

"Nonsense," Mr. Poe said, coughing into his handkerchief, "this is Alfonso, a teacher and a very religious man."

"It doesn't matter what he says," I retorted, "they're all lies. Please, Mr. Poe. Please don't let him take Jane. Please." I sounded desperate now.

"The orphan must leave one way or another," Mr. Lance said, "and how could a man who's so religious and nice to children be that awful person I heard about?"

"Because, he's in disguise, right Jane?" I looked at Jane, desperately for help.

She looked down at her feet. "Right…Jane?" I choked on my words.

"See," Alfonso said, "everything is settled. I am not that horrible man you've called me, and I'm very insulted that you accused me of being him."

"Please, apologize, Klaus," Mr. Poe said.

"No," I growled, "he doesn't deserve an apology."

"Klaus!" Mr. Poe cried, shocked. He coughed into his handkerchief. "That is very rude to say."

"Oh, it's alright Mr. Poe," Alfonso said, "Children can be so unpredictable at times. Well, enough chitchat, we've got to be going. Say goodbye Jane."

"G-goodbye," Jane managed and although she was trying to hide it, I still saw the tears leaking from her eyes and seeing that broke my heart. It sent another wave of anger that surged through me like an electric current reaching to my very core.

"No," I cried. At the same time Alfonso, who had taken a step back towards the front gate, suddenly tripped on something that was too dark to see. He was sent toppling backwards into the fountain.

Mr. Poe and Mr. Lance gasped and hurried forward to help. Jane was staring at me, eyes wide. She knew it had been me.

I took a step toward her and grabbed her small, cold hand.

"Come on," I said, tugging gently on her hand.

She raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Let's get out of here," I said. That's all I wanted. I wasn't mad at Jane even if she might have done something bad. I knew her well enough that she had changed and that she wasn't a bad person. Good people can make mistakes too. I just wanted to take Jane away from here, somewhere safe. I didn't care where we went.

"I can't," she whispered.

"Yes you can," I said, tugging again, "we can hurry back to our common room and runaway with Violet and Sunny."

"Where would we go?" Jane said, looking doubtful.

"It doesn't matter where," I said, urgently, "just not here."

Jane shook her head. "We'd never make it," she whispered, "and what difference would it make? We'd still be miserable. Count Olaf would still come after us. But if I go now, you and your siblings can live in peace again."

"What about you?" I asked, my voice breaking.

Jane glanced behind her at the scene of Mr. Poe struggling to help Alfonso out of the fountain.

"I have to go," she whispered, fresh tears filling her eyes. She swallowed. "I can't be the reason for your misery."

"You're not," I disagreed, "you're the opposite."

She didn't smile the way I expected her to.

Alfonso got back to his feet. We glanced over. Alfonso's wig had fallen off his head and as we looked down at his ankle, the fake tattoo he somehow put on over the original, had faded. In its place was a familiar tattoo of an eye and Mr. Poe recognized it just as we did.

"Oh my heavens!" Mr. Poe cried, "Klaus was correct. That is most certainly Count Olaf."

Count Olaf took this moment to smirk at us. "That's right, fools," he cried, triumphantly, "it's me. Oh, how amusing it was to see you fooled yet again by my disguise."

"This is not funny, you evil man," Mr. Poe said, sternly, "this is a serious crime and I'll have you arrested."

"For what?" Count Olaf sneered, "All I did was adopt a poor orphan."

"For fraud," I spoke up, "and theft."

Count Olaf narrowed his eyes at me.

"You think you're a smarty pants boy, do you?" Count Olaf scoffed, "Yet I still managed to get this little girlfriend of yours to convince those idiots to hand her over to me. And now I'm the very legal guardian of Jane Rumary," Olaf laughed mockingly, "and there's nothing any of you fools can do about it. Well, enough chat I think it's the right time for us to be leaving. Come Jane."

Olaf reached Jane in one long stride, and grabbed her. He began to half-drag her along towards the front gates.

* * *

**Jane Rumary**

"Keep up," Olaf growled as he pulled me along, "you're slowing me down."

I didn't say anything but tied to keep up. His long strides made it difficult to.

"No!" I heard Klaus cry in despair from behind us, "Jane!"

I whipped my head around. Klaus was running, trying to catch up to us. Mr. Poe shouted useless warnings for Klaus and Count Olaf to stop.

"Remember our deal," Olaf warned.

Klaus sped up and almost reached us but we were almost to the gates. Tears brimmed my eyes, knowing that this was the end of the small amount of happiness I had.

We reached the car and the driver's seat door was already open. A man opened the door to the backseat of the car. He had hooks for hands and looked like my math teacher. I realized he must have been disguised as Mr. LaFont. No wonder he had been such a bad teacher. The hook-handed man got into the passenger seat.

We reached the car at the same time Klaus caught up to us. As Olaf started to shove me into the backseat, Klaus grabbed my arm and started to pull me out.

"No!" I cried when Count Olaf was about to hurt Klaus.

"Get the boy out of my way!" he snarled.

"Let go, Klaus," I demanded.

He looked at me like I was crazy. Olaf kept trying to shove me inside.

Klaus shook his head. "Never," he said, firmly.

Olaf was still trying to push me in.

"Wait," I said, "let go of me for a second."

"I'm not falling for that," Count Olaf said.

"I can deal with this," I insisted. Olaf reluctantly let me go and I stepped away to Klaus.

"Why are you doing this?" he said, sounding broken as tears slid down his cheeks, "What difference would you going into his clutches make?"

"He promised to leave you alone," I managed through my own tears, "He said if I don't, he'll hurt you. So I have to go."

"N-no," Klaus disagreed, "no, no you don't." He pulled me into a hug, "you can't leave me here, Jane. I-I won't let you."

"I don't want to leave," I sobbed, "but you…you can't be in danger anymore. I have to go. I can't hurt you anymore."

Klaus pulled me in tighter. "I can't leave you," he sobbed, "I can't let him take away another person I care about. I almost didn't get a chance to say g-goodbye…again."

I sniffled and we were both silent as we sobbed in each other's arms.

"Hurry up, orphan," Count Olaf complained, growing impatient.

I pulled back and took Klaus' face in my hands.

"Sometimes life doesn't go the way you want it to," I whispered, "and sometimes you can't fight it. You just have to hold on," I sobbed, "Promise me you'll be strong. But if I don't go…if I stay here, your life will be in danger for as long as Olaf is still alive. He won't leave you alone. So you have to let me go Klaus."

"No don't say that," Klaus said, weeping, "I don't care about that as long as you're safe. I can't let you go like that. Remember back at Aunt Josephine's when you almost fell?"

I nodded. "I could never forget it."

"You told me to never let you go," Klaus pointed out, "that's what you said to me and I promised you I would never let you go. So that's what I'm doing. I'm not going to break my promise…I'm never going to let you go."

"You have to," I whispered, I sniffled, "it's the only way."

"I don't want to lose you," Klaus said, in a small voice, "not now. Not ever."

"You can't hold on to me forever," I said, "after all, nothing does last forever."

"I won't let go," he said again.

"Klaus, if I leave I need you to know something," I said, "I-"

"You're not going anywhere," Klaus said, firmly.

"Goodbye, Klaus," I whispered, kissing him on his wet cheek. I stepped back towards the car.

"No, no," Klaus kept saying, shaking his head. He reached for my hand again.

Olaf growled and despite my protest, he grabbed Klaus by the shirt and shoved him onto the ground. Olaf pushed me inside the car before getting into the driver's seat. The car was already running so he started for the exit. I looked out the window and saw Klaus running after the car as we turned the corner. I watched Klaus stand there looking at me through the back window. Tears stained his cheeks and it broke my heart. Tears leaked from my own eyes and I watched until he disappeared completely out of my sight. Out of my life.

* * *

**Klaus Baudelaire**

I got to my feet and ran after the car as it drove for the exit. I knew no matter how fast I ran, I wouldn't be able to reach her. But I didn't care. I had to keep moving. If I stopped it would mean I was giving up on Jane. 'Not Jane, not Jane, not Jane,' I kept thinking. I couldn't let her leave. Olaf couldn't take her away from me. He had already taken my home, my parents, and many relatives away and now he was taking the one girl I could never get out of my head. I was slightly angry with myself for not stopping him…for letting her go.

I could see Jane through the back window. I tried to rid my eyes of my tears since they blurred my vision. As long as I could still see her, everything would be okay. Then the car turned and disappeared from sight, taking Jane with it.

I stopped running and stood, watching the place where I'd last seen her. It felt as if I was in some sort of weird dream that I couldn't wake up from. This couldn't be happening. Jane couldn't be gone. She should be here beside me, with her brilliant smile.

I sank to my knees. Violet and Sunny appeared beside me then. They were crying too.

"I'm sorry, Klaus," Violet said, touching my shoulder gently, "We tried to hurry to come help you."

I shook her hand off.

"I should have done something," I said, shakily, "We all saw how strange she seemed this entire time. I should've listened. And now she's gone…"

"It's not your fault, Klaus," Violet said, softly, "Olaf is just a horrible person."

"What if we never see her again?" I cried, sobbing into my hands.

Violet knelt down beside me. "Then we just have to hope that she's okay. She's strong. Mr. Poe will alert the authorities and if that still doesn't work…we'll find her ourselves."

"Fedu!" Sunny shrieked which meant, "Together."

* * *

I really hope you liked it! Please Review, Review, Review!

So it's the end of this part of my fan fic series but it's not over yet! For those of you who enjoyed Melissa Sampson and are sad to see her go, don't worry because she'll return later in the series but that's all i can really say soooo yeah! i'll do a mini section of inbetween it when Jane arrives to whereever Olaf is taking her and a bit of what happens while she's there. Then i'll go into the Austere Academy from Jane's point-of-view which should be interesting because none other than Carmelita Spats will be attending too!

Hope you enjoyed!

I'll post my new story soon!

Thanks again to everyone who reviewed!


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